Stories from Ashford
by icarus923
Summary: In which those from Ashford Academy ponder upon their relationship with the Student Council Vice President, when he was just that. Set in a time before the contract between a Witch and a Demon was formed. Started as a one shot titled "The Best Friend".
1. The Best Friend

**Author's Note: Code Geass is not mine, unfortunately. This is my first story so any feedback is welcome. If there are any errors with my grammar, or spelling mistakes, please tell me. Thanks. Hope you enjoy this.**

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Rivalz has always wondered if he should be happy being Lelouch's best friend or not.

Sure it did have its perks. One was that he became one of the most popular kids at Ashford. Two, he always got invited to good parties; they probably hoped that he'd bring Lelouch along. Another thing was that he can easily get someone to cover for him, or at least tell him what he missed, when he skips class with Lelouch.

Also, thanks to Lelouch's chess skills, he didn't have to bother his mother for allowance since he had more than enough, thanks to his cut in Lelouch's wins and his bar tending gig.

But being Lelouch's best friend also had its down sides. Well, just one thing that would bug any teenage boy.

Whenever he's with Lelouch, girls barely notice him, even though Lelouch keeps turning them down. He can sort of understand why girls keep trying though, since Lelouch is pretty much perfect.

He has shiny, soft jet black hair which smells really nice. Don't ask him how he knows, he just does. And girls seem to really like that.

He has the face and bone structure you only see in sculptures and paintings in museums. He often hears girls saying Lelouch has the face of a Botticelli angel, so maybe that kind of paintings.

Also, Lelouch has _THE _eyes. You know! Those eyes that can melt girls' hearts. He's only seen Lelouch use 'the eyes', as Rivalz had taken to calling it, once before, with that hot older woman that was present in one of their gambling gigs. She looked drunk, and was threatening to report us since we were in a casino while underage. Lelouch gave her _THAT _look, and she stopped talking and seemed to have forgotten what she was saying before, as she kept staring at Lelouch, the jailbait, while blushing madly.

Like any other seemingly perfect person, he has perfect teeth. Seriously, if it was whiter and shinier, it would blind people.

I don't know much about lips other than girl lips, but he would bet his salary for a year that Lelouch had the guy lips girls would love to explore.

Oh, he also had that deep, captivating voice that grabbed people's attention. Every time he spoke out loud, everyone listened. No one would dare talk over him, even those noisy rugby players in class who was twice as big as Lelouch. Either Lelouch's voice just has that effect or they were afraid to be shushed by the girls in class. No one messed with Lelouch if they don't want to be shunned by Ashford's female population. The last guy who messed with him never got a girlfriend again until he left Ashford. Oh! And no girl or woman (yes, including teachers) talked to him for two whole months unless absolutely necessary. When teachers called the guy, they always gave him questions only either Lelouch or Nina could answer.

He also moved with the grace you usually see in dancers and royalty. That senior's ballroom dance challenge was an eye opener to Lelouch's dancing skills. Surely if Lelouch was a member of royalty he would've told Rivalz right? They were best friends, after all. Well, maybe Lelouch's father was member of nobility like the Ashfords. Maybe that was why the Chairman knew Lelouch well? Lelouch didn't like talking about his family other than Nunnally so Rivalz couldn't be sure. Whenever he walked, it doesn't matter where to, there would be at least one girl staring longingly at him. Oh, and girls always have to do a double take when he passes by. Girls stare at Lelouch the same way girls seem to stare at a new hand bag or a pair of shoes (what is it with girls and shoes?) or a chocolate bar. It was creepy, really. He saw Milly doing it once, when she didn't think anyone was looking. He can't really blame her since she was a girl and that Lelouch was just that _type _of guy, but that doesn't make it any less painful to see. He saw Nina do it too. And that was a first, since she usually focused all her attention on her computer. Nina used to keep stealing glances during Lelouch's first year at Ashford. He might be wrong, and the glances might not have any romantic feelings behind them, but he was thankful, when all her focus shifted back to her computer again. At least that was _one_ person not ogling Lelouch all the time.

Lelouch also had this charisma that he only used with teachers and such because it always got them out of trouble.

Let's not forget about Lelouch's brains. He always seemed to know everything. Seriously. Ask him a question and he'd probably know the answer. The right one of course. During physics class, he seemed to be the only one, other than Nina, who could understand half of what we're doing. In English class, the teacher would always praise Lelouch's essays while the rest of the students barely finished.

Lelouch would've been the perfect student if only he didn't skip. Most teachers love him. Except the P.E. teacher, of course. Not after all his skipping and the mess that was _the Rugby Incident_. If he thought about _that_ incident, he knows he would burst out laughing.

Hmm…what else?

Oh! He found it unfair that Lelouch, despite the fact that Lelouch hated any form of exercise and physical activity, had a nice body. He would never admit it out loud because Rivalz was a guy and all, but thank goodness no one would be reading this. He has seen Lelouch in the shower rooms after gym class before, so he knew what Lelouch looked like without clothes. He wasn't _staring _or anything, he just saw it, okay? And boy, was he jealous! He wasn't as muscular as Suzaku, but he was slightly toned. Again, he wasn't staring, okay? But it seemed that there wasn't much fat in there. And as a result, you can easily see the contours of muscle. And how do I say this?

As for other parts...

How 'bout this: Lelouch is... all good _down there_. Okay there! He said it! He should probably stop talking about this now.

What he still doesn't get even after two years of friendship is why Lelouch does _not_ have a girlfriend. So many girls are after him, but he doesn't give them a second glance. When he first realized this, he thought Lelouch was gay. There were some gay students in Ashford that won't mind if Lelouch was batting for their team, but, he doesn't seem to look at them _that _way either.

Goodness! Re-reading what he just wrote, it makes him sound like a Lelouch fangirl! Well, it's fine as long as no one reads this. He had to go, his shift starts in half an hour.

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**AN: Thanks for reading this. Hope you review.**


	2. The Treasurer

**Disclaimer:** Code Geass is not mine, unfortunately.

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The only reason Nina agreed to be the Student Council's treasurer was Lelouch. Lelouch, unlike many others, intrigued her. Usually, she doesn't pay attention to any of the other students but Lelouch was different; he was an enigma to her, and she being the curious person she was, wanted to learn more about him. She was in the same class as him in all their middle school years, and so far, for her first year of high school. They didn't really talk much, even if they sat next to each other (much to the dismay of the other girls, and a couple of the boys in class who wanted the seat next to him), and when they did, it was mostly about schoolwork.

It was obvious to her and the rest of the class that Lelouch was a genius; looking at his exam results was enough proof. She, despite being a member of Mensa herself, was amazed by the extent of his knowledge, whenever he decides to show it. He could easily be the top ranked student in their year only if he did all of his work, and since he rarely did, it was the Stadtfeld heiress who got the honour (another genius, seeing as the girl is not usually in school due to an illness-Nina is only ranked second because she did poorly in English and in P. E. class; she would rather deal with numbers rather than letters). She did wonder what he did in his spare time that resulted in the neglect of his schoolwork. She assumed that he spent his time with his girlfriend, or a job, but she didn't expect it to be spent caring for and doting on his sister.

His sister, Nunnally, was easily the sweetest girl in the whole school. The good looks seem to run in the family as Nunnally was also one of the most beautiful girls in the campus, and as a result, the recipient of crushes from boys in the middle school department (much to Lelouch's dismay).

It saddened her when she realized that the sweet, kind girl will never be able to walk alongside her doting brother, and that she'll never see his kind and gentle smile that was reserved for her alone. Nina overheard that Nunnally was crippled and blinded because of a terrorist attack; she is sure it was those _filthy Elevens_' fault. Only those _barbarians_ would dare harm a girl as sweet as Nunnally.

Even she would admit that Lelouch is very good looking. However, unlike many of the girls, she wasn't interested in him in a romantic way (maybe if he was a girl? He'd make a very beautiful one for sure). She did like his voice though. It was strong, smooth, and commanding; hearing his voice calmed her down. However, with Nunnally, it can be only be described as gentle and loving. He was very eloquent too. Nina remembered him talking to one of the teachers, and who he convinced to let him off the hook for not doing his homework. That, in addition to his good looks and his charisma, made Lelouch Ashford Academy's "Most Eligible Bachelor" since he entered the Academy, not that he cared.

She wondered who their parents were. Judging by the regal air about the siblings, the perfectly refined features, the grace in their every move, their exquisite manners, and the way they spoke, Nina would bet her entire savings that the two are from a noble family. It just wouldn't make sense if the two are commoners, since they stand out too much to be a commoner like Nina, whose only claim to fame was her grandfather Albert, a well-known physicist who worked for the Pendragon Institute for Advanced Study after immigrating to Britannia from the EU. Nina even tried searching them up, but either Lelouch was really just a commoner as the Britannian Birth Registry website states, or Lelouch had already erased all major traces of his family's existence (Nina wouldn't be surprised if Lelouch had the ability to hack into government websites). It named Marianne Lamperouge as the mother, with no mention of a father. She died in a car accident seven years ago. That was it. No other relatives, just the two of them. For some reason, something was _off, _but Nina couldn't put her finger on what it was.

It's not just his familial background she was curious about, she also wondered why he was willing to be Madam President's subordinate. He can easily win an election against her if he so wished; just a few words from that silver tongue of his can convince the entire student body, and perhaps even the faculty, to vote for him. Except for the P.E. teacher, especially after _that _incident. Truthfully speaking, she thinks he can convince anyone to do _anything _for him. That silver tongue got him out of many situations, many of which involve the teachers of classes he skips, and the ex-boyfriends and boyfriends of Lelouch's fan girls.

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Nina knew some people wondered how she became a student council member, when she wasn't exactly popular like Madam President and Lelouch.

As she said before, it was because of Lelouch. Lelouch came up to her at the beginning of their first year of high school and asked if she'd be willing to be the treasurer, as she was good with numbers, and because he can't do the budget on his own, seeing as he has other duties as Vice President and that there were literally hundreds of clubs in the academy. She agreed because she owed him one, as he was the one to help her acquire her research funding.

The Dallas Research Institute, with funding from Prince Schneizel himself, was accepting requests for funding from upcoming high school students across the empire. She had to write a request that needed to be good enough to convince representatives from the Dallas Research Institute to pick her as one of the ten students that would receive funding.

Unfortunately, she wasn't very good with words, and so, her English teacher recommended asking Lelouch for help, as he's not very good with science. The teacher, Mr. Chaucer-Fleming, told him that if he helped Nina with her essay, that the teacher would read it, and if it was good, he'd forget about Lelouch's missed assignments. Lelouch thought it over for a moment, and agreed with one condition, that his name wouldn't be mentioned if she did get the funding.

Accepting Lelouch's help was the best decision of her life. It not only gave her the funding she needed, the Dallas Research Institute also got In Vogue to grant her additional funding.

This was why she agreed to Lelouch's request immediately.

She was introduced to the President right away. The student council members seem to be nice enough, but there's something in the President's smile that sent shivers down her spine, and it was definitely not the _good_ kind.

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As she spent more time with Lelouch, the more she learned about him. She learned that his entire life revolved around Nunnally, and that he'd do anything for her. She noticed that in public, Lelouch might seem cold to people, and that he has very good control over his emotions. Inside the cold exterior however, is a gentle, loving and caring personality, at least when it comes to his sister. She found out, by accident, that the reason he gambled was to pay for Nunnally's medical check-ups. She also found out that he seems to be absolutely oblivious to Madam President's and Shirley's feelings. She can understand why he might not be able to see Madam President's feelings for him as she was very subtle with it, but Shirley was completely obvious. Nina knew that if she mentioned her observations to Madam President that she would deny it vehemently, but Nina was sure of it (being a wallflower her whole life has perks, after all, and one of those was the ability to be able to observe people unnoticed). Then again, one never knows when it comes to the Vice President; he might have noticed but decided to ignore it.

There are times she wished she wasn't in the council, mostly when Madam President gets a crazy idea for an event, and when that incident with the equestrian club occurred. Overall though, she enjoys being in the council. She became friends with its members, and shared many great memories with them.

She really has to finish this budget, or else, a repeat of the incident with the equestrian club would occur, and that is something no one wants. She's sure that she was not the only one to get goose bumps whenever the clippity-clop of the horses' hooves was heard. She swears she even saw Madam President wince once, while an equestrian club member on a horse was passing by.

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**AN:** It just makes more sense to me that Nina is the treasurer, and that Rivalz is the social events coordinator.

Below is a list of Other Characters that I may have mentioned in the fic. I would be including them at the bottom of each chapter, should there be any. Basically, I just wanted to explain how I got the names.

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**Other Character List:**

**Mr. Chaucer-Fleming:**Chaucer is from Geoffrey Chaucer; Fleming is from Ian Fleming.


	3. The Students, Part I: Sophie Wood

**Disclaimer: **Code Geass isn't mine. Yet. But if I were to be honest it's more likely to never be mine, unfortunately.

**AN: **As the title states, this would be one of around five student POV's.

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Her name is Sophie Wood, and she is not ashamed to admit that she is completely in love with the Student Council President, Milly Ashford. She's told her roommate, Shirley, as much, and asked her to introduce her to the President, to which she quickly agreed to. She was lucky to have Shirley as a roommate, as she was a very nice girl. She is however, hopelessly in love with the Vice President, Lelouch.

She can understand why Shirley was so interested in him. Sophie swung the other way, but that didn't mean she was blind. The Vice President was, after all, very handsome, and if he, for some reason, pursued her, she might even make an exception for him (as she said, Lelouch was _very _handsome, and he had really, really nice eyes).

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Anyways, back to the present.

Shirley told her to meet her in front of the Student Council room after classes so she can introduce her to the President. She was almost there when she saw her friend, Daniel Reid-Clyffe, from the Newspaper club with his ear to the door. He turned to look at her, and she was about to ask what he was doing, when he made a shushing motion, and mouthed the word "big scoop". She shut her mouth just in time to her voices coming from inside the room.

"Just take it off. This will be relaxing for you," a female voice said.

"Fine, but let's be quick about this," a deep male voice replied.

Sophie raised both eyebrows and looked at her friend, who just grinned. She stood next to Daniel and put her ears to the door and tried to listen.

"You're so stiff," said the female voice.

"I know. It's been a while after all."

Only male grunts were heard for the next five minutes, until the female voice spoke again.

"Are you ready?"

The owner of the male voice only grunted in response.

"Here it goes!" warned the female voice.

Whatever the owner of the female voice did seemed to be very pleasurable, as they could hear the male in the room moaning in pleasure.

The two eavesdroppers turned to each other, and saw that they were both blushing very hard. They were so red, they could've given Rudolph the reindeer a run for his money.

"What are you guys doing down there?" Shirley Fenette asked, causing the two eavesdroppers to jump in surprise.

"Nothing!" "Chickens!" they stated at the same time.

Both Shirley and Sophie turned to Daniel and just blinked at him after his strange reply. The poor boy started sweating, but was saved from answering by the male voice inside.

"Thanks, Milly. I appreciate it."

"Anytime, Lelouch."

At that statement, Sophie and Daniel froze. The two then slowly turned to each other, eyes widening to the size of saucers, and that both their mouths had formed an "O" of surprise, while Shirley seemed confused by their reactions.

Shirley went to the door, and began to open it. Sophie tried to stop her friend from seeing the scene inside which would definitely break her heart, but it was too late. The door revealed a _shirtless_ Lelouch lying facedown on the sofa with a fully clothed Milly straddling his waist while she massaged his back. Wait! _A_ _massage_? That's all it was?

"What else would it be?" the President answered, raising a perfectly arched blonde eyebrow.

Oh! She said that out loud? How embarrassing!

"You're still saying it out loud," the Vice President answered with a hint of amusement colouring his voice, "And yes, a bit embarrassing, I think. Now that we've been interrupted, could you get off of me, Milly?"

The President nodded and stood up and fixed herself up, while the Vice President went into a sitting position on the sofa, revealing a _sexy _upperbody. She definitely did not expect _that. _His body might not be as toned as Mike Elphelps', the male ace of the swim team, but it was definitely _nice_! Even she-who-swung-the-other-way would admit it! Of course, it would've been better if they were both shirtless, but that thought will be for another time. She turned to Shirley, wanting to see how she'd react to the sight, and saw the most amusing sight. Shirley was as red as a tomato, and was hyperventilating. Her eyes seemed to be permanently attached to the Vice President's chest, and she looked ready to pass out.

The President cleared her throat and asked why they were here, as school has ended a while ago. Sophie nudged Shirley, which seemed to wake the girl up.

"Ah, um, Madam President, we're here because of...uh," Shirley, who failed to keep her eyes away from the Vice President's chest, trailed off.

"What? Lelouch's hot bod caught your tongue, Shirley?" The President's question caused the Vice President to glare at her, and make Shirley blush harder. Sophie has never seen someone turn red so fast.

The amused look on the President's face amazed Sophie. She's never seen someone as unflustered as her while being the recipient of the impressive death glare coming from the Vice President.

Thankfully, before Shirley could pass out, the President took mercy on her, and handed Lelouch his shirt and jacket, which he put on quickly. Now that the _very_ distracting sight was hidden from view, Shirley's complexion seemed to be slowly going back to normal.

Sophie nudged Shirley again, but this time it didn't work, as she kept on looking at her feet and mumbling "massage oils" or something like that. Heaving a great sigh, she introduced herself to the President.

"Sophie Wood from the swim team, at your service Madam President!" she said cheerfully while doing a curtsy.

"One of Shirley's friends, I presume?" the President asked, to which Sophie nodded.

"Well, I'm Milly Ashford, but you can call me Madam President. The one glaring at me is the Vice President, Lelouch Lamperouge. By the way, is there something wrong with giving a person a massage? I'm afraid we've been working Lelouch ragged these last few days since the due for the budget is coming up", the President said.

"Uh, well, um. A-ask _him_!" Sophie stuttered out, pointing a finger at Daniel, who with that statement acquired everyone's attention. It seems that he couldn't handle Lelouch's glare like the President could, and so he ended up squeaking something that sounded like "stiff, grunting, moaning, and massages" before scurrying away to who knows where.

It seems that the rumours regarding the Vice President's intellect was fact, as Sophie saw realization flash across the Vice President's eyes as he put the clues together, a second before the President came to the same realization. Their reactions were interesting to see. The Vice President frowned while blushing just a little bit, while the President just laughed, seemingly amused.

"Well, I'm sure Lelouch wouldn't mind if it that was what really happened," the President said teasingly.

"President! Stop making it sound even more inappropriate!" the Vice President exclaimed.

"But then, if that was the case, I'm pretty sure Shirley would like to join in," the President added which caused Shirley to turn blush again. Was there even a name for that shade of red?

"MILLY!" the Vice President said in a slightly shocked voice.

"No, Sophie, I don't think they even have a name for that shade of red yet," the President answered.

Oh dear, did she say that out loud again? She really has to stop speaking her thoughts out loud.

"Yes, you did. And yes, you should, as it could lead to some potentially embarrassing situations," the President answered with a wink.

Now, _that _was a very sexy wink!

"Thank you, Sophie!"

Sophie blushed.

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**Other Characters: **

**Daniel Reid-Clyffe**: A member of the Newspaper club. A relative of Diethard Reid. Say it out loud, doesn't it sound close to a certain British actor's name? :D No? Well, close enough.

**Poseidon's trident**: It makes them sound elite, so I gave them this name. Poseidon is the Roman god of water, and he is usually depicted with a trident.

**Mike Elphelps**: Well, it's quite obvious whose name I based this on. If you know anything about swimming, you probably have heard of him.


	4. The Students, Part II: Erich Cleitman

**Disclaimer: Code Geass isn't mine. Yet. But if I were to be honest it's more likely to never be mine, unfortunately. **

**AN: The characters, whose point of view we explore, are actually canon characters.**

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A lot of children aspired to become doctors, Knightmare Pilots, Knights of Rounds, and such when they grow up, but Erich Cleitman, was never one of those people. Ever since he was young, he dreamed of becoming the Director of the Imperial Britannia Library in Pendragon. Being surrounded by books never ceased to make him smile, and it was because of this dream, that he was a member of the Ashford Academy library committee. It was also in the library that he fell in love at first sight; it was something he thought remained in fairy tales, and so when it happened to him, he didn't know what to do.

As usual, he was in the library when a girl with long, light purple hair, and beautiful light brown eyes entered his field of vision. Their eyes met, and he felt himself blush when she smiled at him. She walked towards him, making him blush even more. He was panicking inside, as he didn't know what to say to her without sounding like an idiot, but before he could say anything, she placed the books she was holding on the counter and started speaking.

"Hi! Here's my student ID," the beautiful angel said while handing him her ID card.

"Huh?" he dumbly responded.

"Don't you need the ID to check-out the books?" she looked at him confusedly.

"Oh! Umm, yeah! Sorry!" he replied while taking her card.

While checking her books out, he tried to think of something to say, but the blood rushing to his face made it hard to think, and looking at her made his train of thought stop, so he decided to just look down at the counter. He handed her books and ID back, and tried to say something, but before he could, a group of girls called for the angel. After a quick "Thanks!" to him, she left to join her friends, while he was left there staring after her.

After she left, Eric started thinking of what he could've said to his angel, Meeya, according to her student ID, that didn't make him sound like an idiot. Sighing deeply, he began to prepare to leave. After that encounter, he knew he wouldn't be able to concentrate at all.

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As he entered his dorm room, he saw that his roommate and best friend, Eric, was not there yet. He took went to the bookshelf and searched for the school's yearbook. Finding it, he took a seat on his bed and started to look for Meeya. Before he could find her, Eric entered, carrying his flute.

"Eric!" he exclaimed.

"What?" Eric replied.

"I think... I think I'm in love."

"Erich, you know that you sound like a girl right now, right?" Eric asked.

"Oh, shut up!"

"Well, then, who's the girl?"

"Meeya Hillmick" he whispered.

"Who? I didn't hear you. Speak up man."

"Meeya Hillmick! Loud enough for you?" Erich shouted out.

"I said speak up _louder, _not_ shout_. So, Meeya, huh?"

"Yeah, you know her?"

"She's my bandmate's cousin...I think."

"Can you introduce me?" he asked excitedly, almost bouncing in anticipation to his answer.

"Yeah, I guess. But I have to warn you, you have a sort of competition."

"What! Who? And what do you mean 'sort of' competition?"

"Lelouch Lamperouge. I think she's like the secretary of his fan club or something," Eric answered with a smirk.

"And I said 'sort of' because no one really knows if the Vice President likes anyone except his sister," he continued.

"WHAT? WHY, IN THE EMPEROR'S NAME, DOES IT HAVE TO BE _HIM,_ OF ALL PEOPLE? You're only joking, right?" Erich asked frantically.

"No, I'm not. You know, statistically speaking, the chances of the girl you like being a member of Lelouch's fan club is very high."

"Oh, shut up! This is not the time for math, Eric! This is serious!"

"More like a losing and hopeless battle, really, if it was gonna be between you and the Vice President."

"I thought you were supposed to be my best friend?" he pouted.

"I am your best friend, and I'm just being realistic, since you aren't. Oh, and stop pouting like that, you're not five any more," he answered, raising an eyebrow at his best friend's pout.

"How the heck am I supposed to compete and win against the Student Council's Prince, Lelouch Lamperouge?" Erich asked while frowning at the ceiling.

"That, my friend, I do not know," his friend answered.

* * *

Erich did try to win Meeya's affections (he doesn't want to remember most of the things he did—it was embarrassing, but he's sure Eric wouldn't let him forget), but it seemed his friend Eric, was right, it _was _a hopeless battle from the start. It seemed that Meeya, like many others, is completely infatuated with Lelouch. To be honest though, he can sort of understand why the girls liked him so much, and it's probably because the Vice President has the tall, dark, handsome, _and_ mysterious thing going on, seemed to be able to do _anything _well (something he learned _after_ the challenges), and because his purple eyes are very attractive to them_. _

Meeya did apologize to him for not returning his feelings. He told her that she didn't have to apologize because you can't help who you like, something that he's learned recently (he couldn't help it, Meeya is a very sweet girl, after all).

Oh yeah, he also learned to _never, ever_ accept suggestions from Madam President again, unless under threat of death. Maybe not even then, as it would only bring problems (even months after the Rugby Incident, he still can not look the Vice President in the eye, although he's been forgiven) to those who accept it (the rugby team still tease him by covering their genitals with their hands and yelling "Please don't do it!" whenever he passes by).

So, things with Meeya might not have gone well, but at least he got accepted into the University of Pendragon! Maybe there, he can find someone that shares his passion with books. And hopefully, when he does, that the girl would choose _him._

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**AN: Thanks for stopping by!**


	5. The Students, Part III: Eric Kaufman

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own anything mentioned below.**

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Eric Kaufman was hailed as one of the best flute players in his generation. He has been playing the flute ever since he can remember, and he is now part of the Ashford Academy Orchestra. He's been told that a spot has already been reserved for him in the world-renowned Imperial Britannia Conservatory of Music in New York.

His roommate was Erich Cleitman, an aspiring librarian. They've known each other since they were young. They actually became friends because of one similarity: they knew exactly what they were going to do when they grew up. In their kindergarten class, the teacher asked them to draw what they wanted to be. Most children drew pictures of doctors, Knights of Rounds, and Knightmare pilots, while some of the girls drew princesses. Only the two of them drew something different. Eric drew a boy with a flute in the orchestra's wind section, while Erich drew a man with a pencil moustache standing in front of the Imperial Britannia Library. When everyone compared their drawings to each other, only Erich and he drew something so different from the other kids'.

Eventually, the two of them became the best of friends, almost like brothers, really, even if their personalities couldn't be more different. To the public, Erich would seem to be a logical and reserved person, but in private, Erich is nothing but. Erich loved his books, and because of them, was very imaginative, and he would come up with the craziest ideas. Eric thought that he was like a male version of the Student Council President. He, on the other hand, was the person who balanced Erich. He was the more pessimistic of the two, and was definitely the more pragmatic one.

He didn't like beating around the bush, so when his best friend told him that he was crushing on Meeya Hillmick, who together with Mike Elphelps and Shirley Fenette, make up the "Poseidon's Trident", the swim team's three aces, Eric told him the truth: that Erich had little to no chance of getting Meeya interested in him.

Why? It was because Meeya, like many girls in the campus, was hopelessly in love with Lelouch Lamperouge, the Student Council Vice President. That guy actually has a fan club! And he recently found out that they were an actual, legitimate club, complete with funding from the Student Council! He even heard that some of the members of the fan club _do not even_ _attend _Ashford. Most schools probably would never dream of having a club for that purpose, but then again, this was Ashford Academy (probably the most extravagant school in the whole Area, if not the whole Empire) we are talking about (the school even had a _Fantasy Seduction Club_, he's not even entirely sure if that's legal, but he's not complaining).

Anyways, he told his friend what little he did know of Meeya, including the fact that she was the secretary of the Vice President's fan club, which caused his Erich to freak out. It was an amusing sight to behold, that's for sure (Erich was gripping his hair and asking "Why? Why? WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE _HIM_?"), and he wished he had a camera, as his friend looked liked a madman at that moment.

* * *

Erich, despite his warning, still wanted to give it a shot (his friend was very stubborn—if he says he's gonna do it, he WILL do it). His attempts led to the funniest moments Eric has witnessed (where is that video camera when you need it?). Erich made him promise not to remind him of what had happened, but he _needs_ to tell _someone _about the infamous _Rugby Incident_.

Basically, Erich wanted to prove to Meeya that he was better than Lelouch by challenging him to all sorts of things. He managed to get the Student Council President to agree to it (Eric was sure that it was Madam President's idea, not Erich's. Erich might be creative, but he's not _that_ creative; Madam President on the other hand, was a completely different story). He also managed to get the Vice President to agree to the challenges by getting Nunnally to ask her brother (again, he was sure it was Madam President's idea). To every event, Meeya would be present to supposedly witness how much better Erich was than Lelouch. And Eric, being the "supportive" best friend that he was, told Erich that he was not going to bother trying to stop him again, and the he'll just watch (and maybe, if he can find his video camera, record it).

Who was he kidding? Just retell the _Rugby Incident_? Nah, he felt like laughing, so he'll recount the _whole_ thing.

* * *

The first challenge was to prove that Erich was the more graceful of the two, seeing as Meeya and the rest of the Vice President's fan girls claimed that the Vice President was the "most graceful creature on the planet".

There were two parts to the challenge. The first part of the challenge was to walk down the makeshift runway and be as graceful as they can be during their runway walk (Eric was VERY sure that this runway wasn't there a few hours before). The Classical Dance teacher, the gymnastic team's coach, the dance team's coach, and Allison Lohmeyer, the governess of Sancia Asprius (the only daughter of General Bartley Asprius), were judging.

The Vice President went first. He walked calmly down the runway like a professional supermodel. His strides were long, confident, and graceful, while his back was straight (now that he thought about it, he's never even _seen_ the Vice President slouch). They were supposed to do a bow at the end, something that made the Vice President frown slightly. At the end of the runway, the Vice President did his bow, but it was not just your _average_ bow; it was a bow _worthy of the Imperial Court_ (at least, that's what the governess said). For some reason, hearing that comment made the Vice President frown once again (Eric wondered why he would. It was a compliment, wasn't it?). Needless to say, the Vice President won, especially since during his walk, Erich tripped and fell of the stage.

Well, it might not have done much good for Erich, but at least the Vice President's fans enjoyed seeing their object of affection do a runway walk.

* * *

For the second part of the first event, they had to do perform the traditional Britannian Waltz. They would be dancing at the same time with their chosen partners. The event was held in the Student Government Clubhouse (another extravagant feature of the academy), which was fortunate because a large amount of the students showed up. Erich's chosen partner was the Classical Dance Club's president, Sofia Walzer-Von Wien, while the Vice President's partner was the Student Council President (much to the disappointment of the Classical Dance Club's Vice President, Azula Danube).

Every high school student at Ashford had to learn the Britannian Waltz in its mandatory Ballroom Dance class during their first year. However, after that, it's up to the students if they want to continue, or just stay with the basics. Since one of the competitors' partners was the president of the Classical Dance Club, while the other was a former member of the nobility (or so Eric was told), both should be good at it, so keeping up with Erich and the Vice President shouldn't be difficult for them.

The music started and they started to dance. Erich seemed to be doing fine, although he kept on glancing down at their feet every few minutes.

The pair made up of the Vice President and the President did extremely well. The pair moved with a grace no one has witnessed before, and unlike Erich, the Vice President didn't need to glance down at his and Madam President's feet. Watching the pair dance was amazing. They moved, no, _glided _would be more appropriate, around the dance floor.

"They're like royalty," a familiar female voice murmured.

Eric couldn't agree more. The sight of the two dancing was mesmerizing, if he didn't know better, he'd think that they really were royalty. He glanced at the judges' table and saw that all of their eyes were superglued to the couple composed of the Vice President and the President of the Student Council.

As the song winded down, a new one started. However, the new song is for a different type of dance, a... _tango_? He glanced at the judges' table again, and it seems that it was the Classical Dance teacher who changed the music. She looked eager to see what the couples would do.

He looked at his friend and his partner again, only to see that Erich looking at the speakers bewildered while his partner started to lead (looks like she took the fact that the other couple changed their dance style to match the music easily as a challenge).

The Vice President and the President seemed to be unaffected by the change in music and dance style. The two switched to tango easily, then to the paso doble (this time, it was the dance team's coach who changed the song). Again, the couple seemed to have no trouble weaving from dance style to dance style. He checked up on Erich again, and he looked lost, while his partner, Sofia, glared at him.

The music was finally stopped in the middle of a song suited for the foxtrot by the gymnastics team's coach.

It was clear who had won.

The judges only extended it to see how well the Student Council couple would fare. What they saw was something none of them expected. All of them agreed that the Student Council couple would have no problem keeping up with the rest of the nobles, and probably even the royals themselves, in the ballroom.

* * *

For the second challenge, Erich decided to play to his strengths this time. Eric heard him sing before, and Erich was pretty good, not that Eric would admit it. Erich told him that they were supposed to sing a pop song chosen by the President, with the help of the music teacher. He was given "Regeneration" while the Vice President was given "Never End" both by the group Axlone Clamp*. Erich believes he'll do better than the Vice President, seeing as he's had more practice. This time, the judges are the music teacher, the band teacher, and Sancia Asprius' vocal coach (how many people does she hire?).

The challenge was held in the auditorium, a couple of days after the first event. Erich went first this time and did very well, despite his initial nervousness. He got the audience, many of which knew the song as it was on Prince Clovis' Top 100, to sing along with him. After his performance, they even gave him a standing ovation!

When the Vice President went on the stage, the girls went wild. Eric looked around and realized that most of the school was present, including the teachers and the Chairman. Some of the audience, Eric realized, were even carrying banners supporting the Vice President. Goodness! This wasn't a concert, nor was it Britannian Idol! The Vice President waved to the audience and asked them to quiet down. And quiet down they did. Then the Vice President began to sing. Eric corrected himself; this _was_as good as a concert or Britannian Idol! Maybe better! He can practically see the girls' hearts melting as he sang (a couple of students even passed out and had to be taken to the infirmary), and Erich's heart breaking. Unlike in Erich's performance where everyone sang along, the Vice President's performance was quiet. Everyone wanted to enjoy his voice, and singing along would only hinder that.

He doesn't know who'll win this round. Fortunately, he's not judging.

It seems that the judges decided that it was a tie between them! Erich was completely surprised by the decision. The Vice President approached Erich and congratulated him on a job well done. He admitted that he enjoyed Erich's performance as well (Erich couldn't stop blushing; the Vice President is well known around campus as a perfectionist, and to be complimented by _him _ of all people, is a great honour).

* * *

The last challenge was the most amusing of them all (he still wished he had his camera with him!). It was going to be a rugby match, since Erich wanted to prove that he's stronger than the Vice President (Eric wondered why he chose a rugby match, seeing as Erich doesn't even _watch _rugby, let alone _play_). They each had their own teams, and Eric for once, didn't immediately bet on the Vice President, who was known to skip P.E. class often. Despite the fact that Erich's team (dubbed the "Loverboy" team by Madam President) had the physical advantage (seeing as Erich probably has 20 pounds on the Vice President), the Vice President's team (dubbed the "Skipper" team not by Madam President, but by the P.E. teacher) had the advantage of having the Vice President's brilliant mind to device strategies and tactics.

The game commenced, and as much as he'd like to tell you the rules of the game, he can't, as he doesn't know anything about rugby. What DID happen was when the Vice President got the ball (a rugby ball?), and started running towards the... well... goal? Erich decided to run after him, presumably to impress Meeya (who was cheering for the Skippers, which Erich pretended to not notice). He caught up to him, and started _tackling_ him while the Vice President was not looking, which caused the Vice President's fans to scream for him to "watch out!" The Vice President turned around only to see Erich in the air, going towards him.

Bad idea.

Neither mathematics nor physics were Erich's strong subjects, and that included estimating from what distance he should've jumped in order to tackle the Vice President properly. Erich also got the angle wrong, meaning that _his head_was going to hit the Vice President, instead of _his shoulder_.

So basically, what happened was that Erich jumped a little bit too early and with the wrong angle. As a result, Erich landed _much _ lower than he expected.

_Yes_. That meant Erich ended up basically head butting the Vice President's crotch. When they landed on the ground, Erich got up immediately, blushing really hard, while the Vice President went into a fetal position (if that was Eric, he would've immediately grabbed his Crown Jewels, but he supposed that to the Vice President, who was well known for his gentleman-like manners, one can not do that in public, especially in the presence of ladies), hugging his legs while his eyes were tightly shut.

The game was stopped, and the other players had to help the Vice President, who was still valiantly fighting the urge to go grab his crotch, up from the ground, and into the changing room.

What happened would forever be immortalized as the "Rugby Incident at Ashford" (yes, it has to be capitalized thanks to Executive Order 123 of Madam President- wait. There were 122 other ones?).

Eric was the first one to notice that the ball went past the goal. He supposed nobody noticed that the Vice President made it into the goal line because they were all watching Erich fly towards the Vice President.

And because of that one goal, it seems that the Vice President won yet again.

* * *

Erich apologized to the Vice President, who forgave him (only after his cute younger sister pinched his arm). After that, Erich decided to give up on Meeya, who apologized to him for being unable to return his feelings. He was a bit depressed for a couple of days, but once he received his acceptance letter from the University of Pendragon, his good mood was back.

He, like his best friend, was accepted to his school of choice. It's great, but he knows he'll miss Ashford Academy terribly, and though he might deny it, Erich feels the same way.

* * *

**AN: Thanks for reading! **

**Here is the OC list for this chapter. **

**Allison Lohmeyer: **One of the judges in the challenges. The name Allison was the closest name to Alicia that I could think of at that moment. Alicia Lohmeyer was Nunnally's aide and advisor.

**Sancia Asprius**: General Bartley's daughter, and Allison Lohmeyer's...um... governee? The name Sancia is a name of one of the characters in Knightmare of Nunnally.

**Sofia Walzer-Von Wien**: This was the name I chose for the Classical Dance Club's President. The name Sofia was a random choice, but the last name is a literal translation of the words, "Waltz of Vienna" (= Viennese Waltz) in German.

**Azula Danube**: This was the name chosen for the Classical Dance Club's Vice President. It means Blue Danube, a popular waltz by Strauss. I actually don't know anything about the waltz and ballroom dances, and I just found this info on the internet, and worked with that.

**Axlone Clamp**: The band who sang "Regeneration" and "Never End". The name was explained as a foot note in the chapter, but I might as well say it again. "Axlone" is the company that represents Jun Fukuyama, who sang the two songs mentioned above, and is Lelouch's voice actor (as if you didn't know that already). Clamp is CLAMP. You should know who they are. If not, shame on you. I didn't put Jun Fukuyama because Britannians don't like Elevens, and he'd be considered one. I actually wanted to just translate his name, but I couldn't find an English translation for Fukuyama.


	6. The Students, Part IV: Meeya Hillmick

**Disclaimer: Code Geass is not mine. (Yet.) So are DiPods, and everything else, really.**

**AN: Ashford Academy's school system, despite being in Japan, would be mostly based on the North American one (except for the part that the students were the ones to move from room to room) seeing as Britannia is in North America, and because it's easier for me as I study in Canada (Go Canada!). I apologize in advance if the timeline is confusing. If some clearing up with the time line is needed, please don't hesitate to ask.**

**I hope you enjoy.**

* * *

Her name was Meeya I. Hillmick. She was the youngest daughter of the Earl of Denver, a first year student at the High School Department of Ashford Academy, a member of the swimming world's famed trio, the "Poseidon's Trident", and Secretary of the Lelouch Lamperouge Fan Club. She was not ashamed to admit that she was in love with the Student Council Vice President, Lelouch Lamperouge (or "My Honey" in her mind).

Why, you may ask? Well, it's because to her, Lelouch is the embodiment of the perfect boyfriend. He was her prince charming on a white horse (the fact that he's very good on a horse and that the equestrian uniform looks _really good _on him was just further proof of this).

How did she fall in love with him anyways? Meeya remembers certain events that led up to that point.

The first time she saw him was on the first day (night, really) of their first year in middle school, a few weeks after her 13th birthday.

* * *

There were no classes on the first day back, so that the students can get themselves organized and settled in. After spending her summer back in the Mainland, in her father's estate in Denver, she couldn't help but want to catch up with her friends. They spent the whole day together, talking about their respective summers. The first night back, as usual, she can not fall asleep, as she was excited to start her first day in Middle School.

It was past midnight when she decided to go for a swim. Swimming always relaxed her; and it was also something she was _really _good at. Being a member of the famed "Poseidon's Trident" since her enrolment in the Academy had some perks, the most important of which is having unlimited access to Ashford Academy's Aquatic Centre.

She entered the Centre and went directly to the women's changing room. She decided to go to the diving pool this time, rather than the Olympic sized swimming pool. Before she could open the door that led to the diving pool, she heard splashing noises coming from inside. She opened the door just enough so she can see inside. She scanned the area, and soon found the person who made the splashing noises. At first, she thought it was her friend and co-member of the Trident, Mike Elphelps. She was about to call out to him but stopped when she realized that it wasn't him, because the hair on the head that popped up to take in some air, was too dark to be Mike's.

The unknown boy swam to the side of the pool, and pulled himself out. Meeya remembered thinking that the sight was so ethereal, she thought she was dreaming (to check, she even pinched herself, and it _hurt_). She shook her head and told herself to stop being stupid. As the boy's hands ran through his hair to get it out of the way, she saw his face. He had _the most beautiful _eyes she had ever seen. The boy's eyes glinted like amethysts in the moonlight (she's never been as thankful for the glass roof of the aquatic centre as she was then). She felt her mouth go dry as she took in the sight before her; she was half expecting the boy to sprout white wings and take off in the air - he looked _so_ _gorgeous _(she blamed hormones).

She's never wished she had a camera as bad as she did then. Oh wait! She wanted to slap herself for almost forgetting that her new DiPod (named after the current Emperor), which she was holding, had a camera in it! She turned it on and went to the camera app to take a picture of the beautiful sight before her (she's sure even Sophie would approve), but ended up recording (Why _now_?). She was about to switch it to the camera mode but when she saw the boy's back was already turned towards her, and that he was heading towards the diving platform, she decided to leave it recording. The boy quickly climbed the stairs, and stood on the edge of the five metre high platform. After a brief look down, he jumped. He performed graceful twists and somersaults before hitting the water (she's not sure how well he did, as she didn't know much about diving). He went up for air again, and proceeded to do backstrokes (with a good form too!). After a few minutes, the boy seemed to have had enough, and pulled himself out of the pool once more. He took a towel lying nearby and dried himself off, then proceeded to the men's changing room.

Meeya still didn't know who the boy was (although his eyes reminded her of something she saw on TV when she was younger; it was about either Knightmares or the Imperial Family, she couldn't remember), let alone how he got in, seeing as only those of "Poseidon's Trident" are supposedly the only students who have unlimited access to the Aquatic Centre. She looked down at her DiPod; it was a good thing she had the video to show the others. She scanned the pool again to check if the boy returned, but when she registered what she just saw a few minutes ago, she did a double take. She wanted to rip her hair out in frustration when she realized that she seemed to have pressed the record button _twice_ in her impatience. This meant that the recording stopped as soon as she started it, and she didn't notice it as she was mesmerized by the sight of the boy. She played what little video she was able to take, and saw that it was a video of the boy's back while he walked towards the diving platform. Granted, it was _still _a nice view, but she needed the video to at least contain _a glimpse _of his face, to make it easier to ask around. And unless someone can identify who he is just by looking at his derrière, the video is pretty much useless.

* * *

The next morning, she told Lucretia "Luca" Calares, her roommate, about what she saw. Her friend told her that she didn't know anyone who fit the description. It turns out that none of her friends did, not even Isabella Sforza, Ashford Academy Elementary School Section's former "Queen of Gossip" (she had a feeling Isabella would soon become the gossip queen of the Middle School department as well). Thanks to Meeya's description, all of them became curious as to the identity of the gorgeous boy, but he can wait, as they had Britannian History class, and they've heard that Miss Herodotus is someone you do not want to get on the bad side of.

The last place that Meeya expected to see the boy was in her classroom. He was early, and was able to acquire the coveted seat near the back, next to the window. He was looking outside, and as Meeya and her friends entered noisily, his gaze fell onto them. Everyone in her group became quiet immediately, and he looked away. They silently took the chairs in the middle of the room (Meeya wanted to sit next to him, but much to her dismay, that Cardemonde boy... Rover? River? who was currently sound asleep, has taken the only seat next to him, while the seat in front of him was taken by that shy girl, Nina). She tried to tell her friends with her eyes that it was him, but only Luca seemed to have gotten the message. Meeya just sighed, and made to introduce herself to him, but the bell rang, and the teacher came in.

As was customary at the beginning of the year, the teacher made them get up and introduce themselves as she did the roll call (thankfully, she didn't make them '_tell us something about yourself'_). Apparently, his name was Lelouch. Lelouch Lamperouge. On any other, the name might induce teasing, but the way he said it made sound cool and _sexy._ When he stood up, most of the girls saw him fully for the first time, as he was staring out the window before. Meeya looked around and noticed that a lot of the girls, if not all, (and some of the boys) began to blush as their eyes took him in (ah, the _wonders_ of hormones).

She can't decide if he looked better in the sunlight or in the moonlight; one thing she is certain of however, is that he is _very _cute, and it seems that he'll grow more attractive as he gets older.

His voice didn't crack, unlike some of the others' (particularly Rive- _Rivalz_', whose voice was squeaky), instead, it was deep, and as smooth as velvet. After his introduction, he sat down gracefully, and continued staring out the window. _His_ eyes might be outside, but everyone else's eyes were on _him. _The teacher had to clear her throat _twice _AND clap her hands to break everyone from their trance. The teacher had to call out the name "Elizabeth Lanvin" three times before Elizabeth (who would become the Lelouch Lamperouge Fan Club treasurer) took notice, as she was busy blatantly staring at Lelouch.

If she wasn't one of them, Meeya would've found it amusing, how the girls in the class found ways to look at Lelouch. Meeya took out her compact mirror, and angled it towards him, while the more shameless ones just stared at him, as if he was a painting. Thankfully, there wasn't a lesson in store for them, only expectations and class room rules, because if Ms. Herodotus gave them a quiz on today's lesson, most would fail it, as none of the female students were listening to her. The teacher dismissed them early, giving them a longer break time. She turned around and saw Lelouch was preparing to leave. She was about to go up to him and introduce herself, when Stephan Kliegel, a childhood friend from the Horticulture club, came into her classroom, dragged her away to ask her if she knew about a girl with purple eyes (she didn't). After a few minutes, she looked back again, only to see Lelouch gone.

* * *

She did get to introduce herself to him when he returned, but he seemed quite distant, and kept his answers short but polite. She offered to give him a tour of the school, seeing as he was a new student, but he declined it, saying he already got one. It seems that she wasn't the only one to be disappointed in his somewhat cold and antisocial attitude that day, as the number of girls clamouring for his attention died down (temporarily). She hopes that his attitude was temporary, and was just because he's new to the school and still had to do some getting used to his new surroundings.

* * *

The minds of teenage girls worked strangely, she had to admit, as instead of turning girls off with his cold attitude, it attracted them even more. Lelouch was soon nicknamed 'The Ice Prince' by his admirers, earning them a scowl from him when he heard it. 'Ice' because of his cold, calm, and collected attitude, and 'Prince' because of his grace, beauty (he could give Prince Clovis and Prince Schneizel a run for their money), and the fact that he was still a gentleman, opening doors for the girls, and all that, despite his cold attitude.

It was Valentine's Day, and most of the girls in her year were planning to give chocolates and cards to Lelouch, obviously. She was among those planning to give him something, but instead of chocolate, she decided to give him _pudding._

It was by accident, how she discovered his taste for pudding. She was walking around the campus during lunch break and encountered a scene so endearing, it melted her heart. It was Lelouch and his adorable little sister, Nunnally. They were in a secluded spot, sitting under a cherry tree. Nunnally's wheelchair was off to the side, and its cute occupant was sitting next to her gorgeous brother (good looks run in the family, it seems). Lelouch had the most beautiful smile on his face, and it was almost strange to see it, as he seemed very stoic in class. It was a gentle smile, full of brotherly love and devotion. And it seems that it was reserved only for Nunnally. She had to admit that she felt a little bit of jealous of his sister, but then shook her head, as she realized the cost Nunnally had to pay.

The two siblings were chatting between bites, and as they finished their sandwiches, Nunnally reached into the picnic basket and took out a container of..._pudding_? Nunnally took out a spoon, and Meeya overheard her asking her brother to tell her how it tastes, as this was the first time she's made pudding, albeit with someone named Sayoko's (an Eleven?) help. Nunnally then sang 'Happy Birthday' while feeding Lelouch a spoonful of the dessert. He closed his eyes in bliss, savouring the taste of the pudding. It was quite strange to see Lelouch so content. When he opened his eyes, he gave her a bright, adoring smile. She wished that Lelouch would smile at her like that. It saddened Meeya when she realized that Nunnally would probably never see Lelouch's gentle smile that was reserved for her alone. The sight would always melt and break her heart at the same time.

With a sigh, Meeya turned to leave. She was ashamed of herself for peeking at such a private moment, although, it _did _lead to an interesting discovery (and that's when her crush grew to something more).

That was why she decided on pudding instead of chocolates (her friends looked at her strangely when they learned about it, but she didn't feel like explaining).

Hopefully, he enjoyed it. It was amusing to see his expression upon seeing the mountain of sweets that was on his desk. For the first time, he looked like he didn't know what to do, thankfully, Rivalz, who also looked half amused and half envious, offered to get him a bag for them.

* * *

Her feelings for him were solidified spring of their first year.

It was April the 1st, and her friends figured that it would be funny if they took her towel and hid her clothes while she was in the pool. She remembered telling them that she would be doing some extra practice for the upcoming meet. Bad idea, since that was when they decided to prank her. She was the only one at the pool by the time she finished her practice. She then realized that her towel that she left by the pool was missing. Thinking she just left it in the changing room, she proceeded to the changing room and saw that all of her clothes were gone. So were all the towels, and everything else she could use to cover up. All that was left was a note saying "April Fool's! This is your punishment for spending more time in the pool than with us!" The only silver lining to the whole thing was that most of the students were either in the cafeteria or in their dorms by this time. Meeya left the changing room, thankful of the warm weather, as she is still dripping wet.

Seeing that the coast was clear, Meeya exited the Aquatics Centre and ran towards the student dorms. It was as she turned a corner near the Student Government Clubhouse that she tripped on something AND collided with someone (she'll admit it; she can be quite clumsy on land). She fell onto her backside with an 'oof', and could feel her ankle throbbing. She looked up and saw the last person she expected to see, Lelouch (now that she looks back, where _was_ he going? It's getting pretty late, and the boys' dorms were in the opposite direction).

"Are you okay?" asked Lelouch while he offered his hand to help her up.

"Um...Yeah, I think so," she lied, as she took the offered hand.

"Why are you running around in a swim suit anyways? I know it's warmer in April, but..." he trailed off.

"W-well, my friends took my clothes and all the towels from the changing room" she stuttered, blushing.

"Did you check the boys' changing room?" he asked.

"R-right. I didn't think to check. I was in a hurry so- AH!" she exclaimed as she grimaced in pain.

"Hey! Are you alright?" he asked, his tone laced with concern, as he supported her.

She couldn't help but blush because of their close distance, despite the pain in her ankle.

"M-my ankle. I-I think I twisted it," she stuttered out (why can't she stop stuttering?).

She saw a worried frown cross his features, before returning to normal.

"Then, let me take you to the infirmary. I don't think you want your ankle to get worse. Isn't the semi-finals in two weeks?" he asked.

"Yes! How did you know?" she blurted out. She could feel her heart racing. Could it be? Was it possible that Lelouch was interested in _her_?

"Ah, Rivalz told me," he replied, making her heart sink.

"Anyways, put this on. You must be cold," he continued, handing her his school coat.

"T-thanks," she answered with a blush.

"Would you let me carry you to the infirmary? I don't think making your ankle worse by making you walk all the way there would endear me to the PE teacher."

"N-no, I don't mind. Thank you and I'm sorry as well," she apologized.

"It's no problem. After all, I, too, am at fault," he replied.

Lelouch, despite his slender physique, was able to carry her bridal style.

"You know," Lelouch began, "You can place your arms around me, I won't bite. It will make it easier for the both of us," he finished, a perfect eyebrow raised in amusement and a small smirk on his face.

Meeya obeyed instantly; if Lelouch wasn't carrying her already, she thinks her knees would've given out, as his face was _dangerously_ close to hers. If she were to just move a few inches forward, then their lips would...

She shook her head slightly, trying to clear her head from those thoughts. Thanks to their proximity, she was able to get a whiff of his scent. He smelled nice, unlike some of her other male classmates, who smelled like sweat most of the time. His scent was a mixture of soap, a hint of lavender, and something that she assumed is _Eau de Lelouch_. She closed her eyes and leaned her head on his chest, hoping he won't mind (seeing that he hasn't said anything yet, she thought he didn't), and enjoyed the moment.

The "moment" ended too quickly for her tastes. She kept her eyes closed, hoping that this would somehow prolong the moment. At the infirmary, Lelouch brought her to the nurse.

"Is she okay? And why in Britannia is she only in a bathing suit?" the nurse asked worriedly.

"I think she twisted her ankle. She must have fallen asleep on the way here. And as for the bathing suit, someone took her clothes and all the towels from the changing room," Lelouch's deep, soothing voice replied.

The nurse made a disapproving sound, but before she could say anything, Meeya decided to open her eyes.

"Ah, there she is. How are you feeling, Miss..." the nurse trailed off.

"Hillmick. Meeya Hillmick. My ankle hurts a bit, but otherwise, I'm fine," she answered with a yawn.

"Exhausted, too it seems," the nurse added, to which Meeya just shrugged.

"Well, Miss Hillmick you'll catch something if you keep going out like that. Bring her there, Mister Lamperouge," the nurse pointed to one of the rooms, "Let me just get a towel for her, then we'll take a look."

Lelouch followed the nurse directions and entered one of the rooms, and laid Meeya gently on the bed. After a few minutes the nurse returned with a towel. She handed the towel to Meeya, and took a look at her ankle.

"Fortunately, you didn't sprain your ankle but it may hurt a bit when you're walking. It should be fine in a day or two, provided that you take it easy. You're lucky that it's a Saturday tomorrow," the nurse told Meeya, to which she agreed.

The nurse turned to Lelouch, "Would you mind assisting Miss Hillmick here to the girls' dorms? From there, the dorm manager can help her get to her room."

"I don't mind," he replied.

"Thank you, Mister Lamperouge."

"It's no problem at all," he replied. He turned to Meeya, and asked "Are you ready?"

Instead of answering, Meeya just nodded her head, and was surprised when Lelouch offered to carry her again.

"Well, as I said the PE teacher would hate me if I make you walk in your condition, and she already doesn't like me for skipping her classes," he stated.

"I'm okay with it. Thanks again," she replied with a slight blush (who in their right minds would refuse anyways?).

* * *

The trip to the girls' dorms was much shorter than the trip to the infirmary, and so, soon enough, they arrived at the girls' dorms. Lelouch managed to convince the dorm manager to let him carry her to her room, which was on the second floor.

They took the elevator, and soon enough, were in front of her room. They knocked, and waited for her roommate to open the door. The door opened to reveal a sleepy looking Luca, whose eyes widened as she processed what she was seeing.

"Are you okay, Meeya?" she asked worriedly.

"Yes, don't worry, Luca. I just hurt my ankle a bit, that's all," Meeya replied. A cough interrupted their conversation, and reminded them that Meeya was still being carried by Lelouch, bridal style.

"I apologize, but I must be going soon. Miss Calares, will you assist Miss Hillmick in my place? I am afraid it's not appropriate for me to go in..." he trailed off.

"Of course! And it's just Luca," Luca replied immediately.

"And it's Meeya. Thank you, Lelouch, for everything."

"It's no problem at all," he said while gently returning Meeya to her feet, after which, Luca took over.

"Good night to you both. Get well soon."

"Thanks. Good night to you too," Meeya responded.

After a nod, Meeya and Luca watched him leave.

Luca helped her to her bed, and sat next to her.

"Meeya. You. Have. To. Tell. Me. What. Happened!" she finished.

But instead of answering Meeya asked, "Whose idea was it to hide my clothes?"

"That's not important right now. Now, tell me!"

Knowing that no one can dissuade Luca from anything, she started recounting what happened that night with a sigh.

Fortunately, her ankle was fine by Sunday, as the nurse predicted. This relieved her as the coach would be upset if she found out that Meeya had injured herself this close to the meet. She also found out who the masterminds behind the prank were; it was Isabella and Sophie Wood.

* * *

On Monday morning, she found out that _everyone_ new about Lelouch's chivalrous actions. That was, she supposed, the downside of being friends with Isabella. Isabella came to her and Luca's dorm Saturday morning to learn the results of their prank. When they told her about Meeya's ankle, she apologized and explained that she only wanted to get Meeya out of the pool, and demanded that they tell her what had happened when she heard about the part about Lelouch.

When Meeya told her, Isabella kept going "Oh My Emperor!" while fanning herself, "So romantic!" she giggled.

"Who knew he was so gallant?" she asked, to which the other two could only shrug.

Naturally, Isabella told _everyone _she knew; and she knew _a lot _of people_._So by first period Monday, the girls in her class kept asking her to confirm the story. When Lelouch entered the classroom, it seems that most of the girls released a sigh of admiration, to which Lelouch seemed oblivious to.

She felt her heart racing, and a blush formed on her face when she saw that he was heading in her direction.

He stopped in front of her desk and asked, "How's your ankle?"

"I-It's okay. T-thank you!" she stammered out.

"Good to hear that. Well, good luck with the meet," and with a nod, he left, probably not hearing Meeya's muttered 'thanks'.

* * *

After that night, Meeya began to observe him closely, and she felt herself falling in love with him just_a little bit more _each time.

She wasn't ashamed to admit that she had feelings for Lelouch (she was actually quite vocal about it when around her friends), and she thinks that was why she ended up becoming the Secretary for the Lelouch Lamperouge Fan Club, or LLFC for short, (she's heard rumours that the club's President started the LLFC started after a suggestion from another club's blonde haired President) in her first year of high school, where they can gush about the Vice President to their hearts' content.

The only reason she hasn't acted on her feelings yet was that she was looking for the perfect moment to do so (for some strange reason, she felt that it would happen in the library, that's why she frequented the place so much).

Speaking of the library, she remembered meeting Erich Cleitman, a third year who apparently had a crush on her, there.

Meeya remembers it vaguely, the guy at the library's check-out counter who kept on blushing and stuttering when she went there to get her books out. He _was_ nice and cute, although older than her, and if she wasn't already in love with the newly appointed Student Council Vice President, she _might_ have been interested.

What made Meeya remember him was not the blushing and stuttering, but his introduction. He introduced himself, and stated quite bluntly that he liked her and was going to prove to her that he's better than Lelou- _the Vice President_ (not just _Lelouch_, anymore), and that he'll make a better boyfriend. Before she could utter a reply, he ran off, blushing madly. She was left there, standing in the hallway, gaping like a fish. '_What just happened?_'she remembered asking herself.

* * *

To prove himself, Erich, came up with three challenges (Meeya had a feeling that Madam President had something to do with this), to which she _must _be present (an order from Madam President herself).

* * *

The first challenge was to learn who is more graceful. And apparently, there were going to be two parts to the first challenge.

The first was a runway walk (which made her wonder where in the Emperor's name did that stage come from? She passed by this area a few hours ago, and it wasn't there!). As expected, Lelouch won it, as no one in this school walks with the amount of grace he does (except, maybe Madam President). He looked like a supermodel, and her friends couldn't help but whistle and make catcalls at him (quite unlady-like, really, but then, _this _was the super sexy Vice President we're talking about), which he just ignored, as he did his walk. He did a bow worthy of the Imperial Court at the end, and quickly left the stage. Erich, on the other hand, didn't do so well. At the beginning, Erich looked nervous as he saw the audience that gathered, but as he did his walk, he seemed to gain some confidence. Unfortunately, as he was about to do his bow, he tripped, and fell of the stage. She felt bad for him, as he looked embarrassed when he got up, so she clapped for him, as he still did his best. The judges, composed of three teachers and someone's governess, unanimously declared the Vice President as the winner for this part of the first round.

* * *

The second part of the first event was held at the Student Government Club House, which was _almost_ spacious enough to accommodate the audience. The Vice President's partner was Madam President (Meeya was little bit jealous, but then she remembered that she wasn't very good at ballroom dancing anyways), while Erich's was Sofia Walzer-Von Wien. All four were wearing formal attire, to make it look more serious (it was probably Madam President's idea, which Meeya was very thankful for, as Lelouch looked absolutely dashing in his black tail suit). The Classical Dance teacher told them to get into position. The two couples obeyed, and shortly after, music suited for a Britannian Waltz started.

She was absolutely sure that everyone's eyes eventually ended up on the Student Council couple; they were so graceful! It was an amazing sight to behold, as you do not see this everyday. Meeya would admit that neither she nor her friends can dance like Madam President and the Vice President were dancing, despite being taught how to do so at a young age (the consequences of being a daughter of a noble). The two basically _glided _across the dance floor, and she couldn't help but murmur, "They're like royalty" (at the corner of her eye, she saw the guy in front of him nodding in agreement). The grace in their movements reminded her of the dancing in the Emperor's 61st birthday party (oddly enough, His Majesty wasn't present for most of it). She was watching it on TV, and she saw just how much more graceful the princes and princesses were compared to her (perhaps grace runs through their veins? - but that doesn't explain why the Vice President and Madam President have it).

From what little she saw of Erich's performance, she saw that he was doing pretty okay, although he did keep glancing at his and Sofia's feet every few minutes.

The music soon winded down, but before it could completely stop, someone changed the music. Instead of music suited for the Britannian Waltz, it was now suited for a tango. She saw Madam President and the Vice President change their grips slightly, and then continued dancing. Meanwhile, Erich looked confused, so Sofia, who had a determined look in her eye, took the lead. Meeya knew that Sofia was a very competitive girl. Add that to the fact that she seems to dislike Madam President, and you've got a serious and determined Sofia. She looked frustrated as her partner could not keep up with her, and a little bit pained, as Erich stepped on her toes for the nth time since the dance changed.

When the music changed a second time, this time it was music suited for an EU dance called the _paso doble_, Meeya expected that the Student Council couple wouldn't be able to keep up, as the _paso doble _was not widely popular in Britannia, and so, was not taught during their Classical Dance classes (the EU was still their enemy, after all). It seems that Sofia came to that revelation too, as she looked a little bit smug. Sofia's face went from being smug to disbelieving, when the Student Council couple kept up with the music. Sofia then started to glare at Erich, for being unable to keep up with her. Meeya felt sorry for him as they were only expected to do the Britannian Waltz. The music changed a third time to a foxtrot, and again, keeping up was not a problem for the Student Council couple. Sofia seemed to have stopped glaring at Erich, and started glaring at the dancing couple with pursed lips. Before the music ended on its own, someone stopped the music, as there was no doubt who won.

* * *

The second event was a singing competition. This time, it was held in the auditorium, which was fortunate, as most of the student body showed up. Erich sang her favourite song, Axlone Clamp's hit "Regeneration". In her opinion, he did really well. Everyone was singing along, and everyone gave him a standing ovation afterwards, while cheering his name. He smiled brightly in her direction, making her blush slightly. Then, the Vice President went up on stage, and everyone quieted down.

His performance was very different from Erich's. In Erich's performance, he performed like he was in a pop concert, and got everyone to sing along. In the Vice President's performance, everyone was quiet because they wanted to enjoy his voice, and by singing along, they might ruin it. When the Vice President got to the chorus, her heart turned to mush as he imagined him singing it to her. She heard a couple of thumping sounds, which she later found out were sounds that were caused by two female bodies hitting the ground as they fainted.

Meeya, despite being a member of the Vice President's fan club and having feelings for him, was undecided to who the winner should be. Both did a great job, and it was hard to decide as she enjoyed both performances. She turned to Erich's direction, and saw that he was looking at the judges' table nervously. The judges were murmuring to each other, and then started nodding at each other; it seems that they have made the decision. The music teacher called Madam President over to them, and whispered their decision for her to announce. Upon hearing the results, she smiled brightly and went up the stage.

It was a tie. It seems that she was not the only one who had had a hard time deciding on the winner. She looked to the Vice President's direction and saw he was as composed as ever. She looked at Erich and saw that he had a relieved smile on his face. Their eyes met, and he gave her a shy smile, while she flashed him two thumbs up, which resulted in a thousand watt smile from the older boy.

Someone tapped Erich's shoulder, and when she looked behind him, she saw that it was the Vice President, whose hand was raised in a handshake, which Erich took immediately. Meeya couldn't hear what they were talking about, but she saw the Vice President gesturing at himself and his little sister. Whatever the Vice President told Erich made him stand a little bit straighter and a bit more confident.

* * *

It seems that for the third event, Erich decided to go for the Vice President's weakness. It was well known around the campus that the Vice President regularly skipped PE classes, much to the PE teacher's irritation. Erich decided on a game of rugby, in which the first one between the two of them to score would win. Meeya was worried for the Vice President, as everyone in the opponent's team, including Erich, had at least 10 pounds on the Vice President.

Erich's team was dubbed "the Loverboy" team, much to his and her embarrassment, while the Vice President's team was dubbed "the Skipper" team, thanks to the PE teacher.

The "Skipper" team were huddled around the Vice President who was explaining something to the players, who were nodding profusely. She wished that the Vice President had a good strategy in mind to balance the physical advantage the other team had on them. After saluting the Vice President, the Skipper team members took their positions, while the other team did the same.

Shortly after, the game began.

Meeya did not know much about sports, other than swimming of course, so she didn't have a clue what was supposed to happen. Her friend, Luca, told her it was similar to Britannian football (she didn't understand why they called it as such, as they didn't really kick the ball much), but Meeya did not know much about that game either, despite it being a popular sport in the Mainland.

Nonetheless, Meeya cheered for the Skipper team. She cheered even louder when she saw the Vice President near the goal with the ball in his hand. Since his back was to the other players, the Vice President did not see Erich running after him. As the Vice President was almost there, Erich decided to go for broke, and tackle the Vice President, making her and the others scream "Watch out!" It seems that he heard it as he turned around fully to see what's going on behind him, and that made things much, much _worse._

As she said before, she didn't know much about rugby but she did, however, know that you're _not_supposed to headbutt your opponent's _crotch_, which what resulted in Erich's "tackle". The Vice President went down, and went into a fetal position as soon as Erich got off of him. The Vice President looked to be hugging his legs, while his eyes were firmly shut. The other players started gathering around him once the game was stopped. Erich, who was apologizing profusely, and the rugby team captain helped the Vice President up and brought him into the changing room.

Erich's friend, Eric, started waving for the PE teacher's attention; he then started pointing at the location where the Vice President got "tackled", and when everyone turned to look at what he was pointing at, they all saw that the ball was past the goal line.

It seems that despite all that had happened, the Vice President still won, thanks to the momentum from Erich's "tackle" that got him past the goal line.

* * *

Before she left the rugby field, Erich approached her and asked if they could talk, to which she agreed to.

"Is the Vice President alright?" Meeya asked.

Erich flinched before nodding, before starting to speak. "E-erm...y-yes, I heard that he'll be okay. L-lady Hillmick, I would like to apologize for the trouble I've caused, especially since I ended up losing," he stammered out.

"I-it's alright. You did well, and it was fun to watch. W-well, maybe except the last part," she said, making the brown haired boy flinch again. "I-I'm sorry I can't return your feelings, Erich, you're a nice guy and all; it's just..." she trailed off.

"Please, don't apologize. I-I think I understand why everyone likes the Vice President very much. And you can't help who you fall in love with, right?" he smiled weakly.

Meeya nodded meekly.

"E-even if I somehow won, it probably wouldn't work out anyways, as I'm graduating soon. And I'm planning to return to the Mainland if I get accepted to the university I wanted to go to," Erich continued nervously. He seemed to have noticed that he was rambling, as he blushed even further before adding, "W-well, it was an honour to meet you, L-lady Hillmick".

"Please, just call me Meeya, you are, after all, still my senior," she replied.

"A-alright then, M-meeya," he stuttered out, before continuing, "I-I should probably go now, I have to apologize to the Vice President some more," he chuckled nervously, before sprinting away.

* * *

Despite turning him down, Erich was still friendly towards her, and helped her out whenever she's in the library. Speaking of which, the _thing_that was supposed to happen between her and the Vice President at the library has not happened yet, so she's still waiting for _that._

School continued on, and by June, Erich's graduation came. She congratulated him when she heard that he got accepted into the university he wanted to get in to, making him blush and stutter when he thanked her.

Also, she...wait! It's four p.m. already? Well, that's enough reminiscing for now. She's going to be late for practice!

* * *

**AN: If you're wondering about Lelouch's strength, well, he had to lift Nunnally often, so... meh. Who am I kidding? I just felt like making him of average strength and stamina.**

**And again, reviews are very much welcomed. Thank you for reading :D**

**Other Characters List:**

**Miss Herodotus**: The name I gave their Britannian History teacher. Herodotus was a famous Greek historian.

**Elizabeth Lanvin**: I don't even remember how I got this name... This name was given to the Lelouch Lamperouge Fan Club treasurer.


	7. The Students, Part V: Stephan Kleigel

**Disclaimer: Code Geass isn't mine. Yet. But if I were to be honest it's more likely to never be mine, unfortunately.**

**AN: Haven't updated lately seeing as 9gag stole most of my soul, I barely managed to get away from it. Anyways, happy (belated) holidays!**

* * *

The Horticulture Club was one of the hundreds of clubs at the prestigious Ashford Academy. Stephan Kleigel was only one of its twelve members. His parents enrolled him at Ashford Academy at the end of elementary school, where he immediately signed up to be a member of the Horticulture club. He was thankful he had his childhood friend, Meeya, there because otherwise it would have been difficult for his near-sighted self. Soon enough, he made friends, mostly other members of the club, although he still did prefer the company of his plants.

* * *

He met Lelouch Lamperouge in his first year of middle school. He aspired to be like him because he was, in Stephan's eyes, the epitome of cool. Most of the school's female population have a crush on him, while the guys have a grudging respect for him. Most teachers like him enough, despite the fact that he skips often to go who knows where with his friend, Rivalz.

What most did not know was that Stephan has an embarrassing secret that had to do with the Vice President, and he had never told anyone about it yet.

As a member of the Horticulture club, he had to help take care of the flowers around the academy. Today, he volunteered to trim the rose bush next to the middle school building before class. He happened to look up into one of the classrooms on the second floor. Through the window, he saw the most beautiful sight.

Sitting on the desk next to the window was a _very_ pretty girl who seemed to be taking a nap. She had short black hair and a very pretty face. She was leaning on her hand as she napped. As if sensing his gaze on her, she opened her eyes and looked down in his direction.

His first thought was _'wow! What pretty eyes!'_. Stephan has never met anyone with purple eyes before, and the only time he has seen that colour on a person was on the news, whenever they feature the Imperial Family; but, as far as he knew no one from the Imperial Family was going to Ashford, so the girl was probably a daughter of a high-ranking noble.

Anyways, he just kept staring at her, which made the girl raise a perfectly arched eyebrow in curiosity. The girl yawned, breaking their eye contact, and then, a blue haired boy approached and started talking to her, taking her attention from him.

The warning bell rang, signalling that the beginning of classes would be in five minutes, and he had to run to his classroom to not be late for his Math class. He didn't even finish trimming the rose bush!

* * *

He could not concentrate in math class, which got him in trouble with Mr. Newton, as his thoughts keep going back to the purple-eyed girl. He wondered who she was, and decided to ask his childhood friend. Mister Newton dismissed them early, so he went to his friend's classroom and found her quickly (her pink hair made her really easy to spot). He saw her about to get up. He went to her seat quickly, and dragged her away to a corner and asked her if she knew anyone with purple eyes. She said she didn't know about a purple-eyed girl, and walked back to her desk, looking distracted all the while. As he was walking back to his classroom, he tried to remember which room she saw the girl in. His eyes widened when he realized that it was Meeya's classroom, he was about to go back there when he bumped into someone.

"Oh! Sorry!" Stephan apologized. He looked down at the person he bumped into and saw purple eyes. His eyes widened again as he looked the person up and down, and saw that the "girl" was wearing the boy's uniform_._

"It's alright,"a definitely _male _voice replied. "Why were you staring at me this morning?" he continued, raising the same eyebrow he saw this morning.

"I...ah...um...n-nothing! Bye!" he blurted out, before running away. Stephan didn't dare look back, as he was quite embarrassed for mistaking the boy to be a girl, blaming his nearsightedness for the mistake. The boy was _really _beautiful, but there were features, there that were definitely masculine. From afar though, the boy can easily be mistaken for a girl due to his rather effeminate features. Plus, Stephan couldn't see the uniform that he was wearing, only the head, from his position on the ground this morning.

He got back to his classroom, trying to get the blush to disappear. Hopefully, Meeya wouldn't realize that he was talking about her classmate.

* * *

As time passed by, he learned from the snippets of conversation he overheard, mostly from girls, that the boy was Lelouch Lamperouge. It seems that Lelouch quickly became popular amongst the female population, especially since the most beautiful second year, Milly Ashford, visited Lelouch's classroom often.

As he learned to ignore the embarrassment he felt for mistaking Lelouch for a girl, he started to admire him instead. Why? Because Lelouch was _cool. _And it was something he yearned to be. Everyone seemed to like him despite his cold attitude, because apparently, one his fans learned that he doted on his little sister. Lelouch quickly became known for his intelligence and chess skills when he managed to beat Robert Fischer, the President of the Chess Club, easily.

Lelouch was also easily one of the most graceful and charismatic people he has ever met. He walked how Stephan imagined royalty would, and had good manners. He talked with eloquence and confidence; never stuttering, unlike Stephan, during public speaking assignments. He was perfectly poised, elegant, and always the gentleman. Lelouch never had a single hair out of place, nor were there any wrinkles in his clothes. All in all, this added to his _cool_ factor. And he's not the only one to notice it; the girls seem to appreciate the fact that he was always well-groomed.

He tried to be more like Lelouch, starting with his clothes and his hair, but found it took more time than he thought it would. He also learned that dying his hair jet black while his eyebrows remained light blond was _not_a very good look for him. Thankfully, he dyed his hair on a Friday night, and that the hair dye he used was temporary, so he was able to return his hair back to its normal colour by Monday morning. He considered asking Lelouch himself for advice but faltered everytime he tried to do so. So, he gave up trying to _look _like Lelouch.

* * *

What he _did_ do next actually helped him in the long run. He forced himself to talk more, as he was as shy as a mouse. He ended up making more friends, and being more confident with talking to people.

Time passed, and he soon found himself in his first year of high school. That was when he met _her _for the first time. This time, he's 140% sure that she's an actual girl.

He has never wanted to be more like the Vice President (yes, his idol was immediately recruited to this position by Madam President as soon as the last class of middle school ended) than when he met Kallen Stadtfeld. She was easily one of the most beautiful girls in the campus, if not _the_ most. Although, Madam President was a _very _close second.

His shyness returned with a vengeance when it came to her, and he's never had the courage to introduce himself to Kallen. Somehow, he ended up as a member of her fan club. Ashford Academy had three big fan clubs: the Lelouch Lamperouge Fan Club, which somehow had members from other schools in Area 11, the Axlone Clamp Fan Club, and the Kallen Stadtfeld Fan Club, which were mostly composed of the Horticulture club and Film club members. It still made him wonder how the Student Council managed to provide funding for all the clubs at the school, when they have to fund the sports clubs, the fan clubs, and academic clubs. He's not quite sure how the Fantasy Seduction Club came to be and if it was even appropriate for such a prestigious school, let alone which category to put it under.

Back to his dilemma, how should he approach Kallen? Hearing about her background intimidated him further. Not only was she a beauty, she was also at the top of her class, and she was the only daughter of a _duke_. Not your ordinary duke either (if dukes could ever be ordinary); her father was the 34th Duke of Edmonton. The very same duke responsible for helping turn the Tokyo Concession to what it was today. The only problem with Kallen was that she wasn't at school often, due to a rare illness that took a lot out of her. He doesn't know how she keeps her grades so high, despite not being here for most of the lectures. That's just another thing to admire her for.

But, it seems fate has it out for him, seeing as every time he gathered enough courage to go to her class room and introduce himself to her, she was _not _in school. Basically, he never got the chance to introduce himself to her during their first year in high school. Thankfully, he still had two years to go before they graduate.

* * *

A day after the Shinjuku incident (apparently, some terrorists decided to steal poison gas, which was quite worrisome as they weren't even half an hour away from there!), he had overheard classmates talking about Kallen's first school appearance of the school year (was her illness really that bad?). The mystery of what happened at Shinjuku was pushed out of his mind as he decided that today was _the day._

* * *

During lunch time Stephan went to Kallen's classroom, but she was not there. He was walking along the school hallway on the second floor when he saw her through the window. She seemed to be hiding behind a bush in the courtyard when the Vice President approached her (Stephan had a bad feeling about this). They seemed to be talking (he was hoping that that was all there is to it) when their conversation was stopped by Shirley's voice. She was two windows over, and she was yelling something about their chemistry class. The Vice President looked slightly worried as he remembered that he had a lab report due, and then promptly ran off, leaving Kallen alone. Kallen looked at the direction the Vice President ran off to, and followed in a much slower pace.

When they were dismissed, he decided to try again, so he went to her classroom. But when he got there, he heard the last thing he wanted to hear.

He saw that Kallen was surrounded by her friends, when the Vice President approached her desk.

"Would you like to come with me for a while?" the Vice President asked, "I'd like to talk to you," he explained. Basing on the other girls' look of surprise, Stephan wasn't the only one who was surprised by the Vice President's blunt request.

His crush replied with "Great. I thought you might ask me out."

Kallen's reply made Stephan want to cry and tear his hair out in anguish while Kallen's friends squealed in excitement (Stephan thought that that action was only reserved for character from those cartoon shows Elevens call _anime, _not real life). He didn't know if he should hate the Vice President or admire him for his confidence in asking Kallen _that_).

The two walked out of the classroom together, passing him while he was still frozen in shock.

* * *

That same night, His Royal Highness, Prince Clovis, the Viceroy of Area 11, was pronounced dead. It seems that an Honorary Britannian soldier named Suzaka...Suzuka Kururugi (or something like that) was the suspect, and would probably be executed for treason (he felt a bit bad for him, as he didn't look to be much older than Stephan).

The night of the Kururugi's trial (pretty much everyone knew how it was going to go), which he was watching on TV, this Zero guy appeared. He admitted to being Prince Clovis' murderer. He was able to rescue the Kururugi guy in the most audacious way possible.

The transport stopped in front of Margrave Gottwald. Then flames went up, and then BAM! Someone wearing a hawk-like mask was revealed! He (or she, but he had a feeling that it was a guy) was standing on top of the Viceroy's transport, clothed in this strange dark purple outfit with a black cape. He introduced himself as Zero.

The Margrave seemed to have had enough, and got the Viceroy's transport surrounded by Knightmares that dropped out from the sky. (Oh well, bye bye, Mr. Zero, he remembered thinking, although he was impressed since Zero didn't seem afraid at all). The Margrave ordered Zero to take his mask off. Zero's hands went to his mask, but instead of taking it off, he snapped his fingers. The back of the transport opened up, and there was _something _in it. Stephan had no clue what it was, although it didn't look very safe to be near to. The Eleven tried to say something, but before he could finish his sentence, he was electrocuted by that thing on his neck (poor guy).

The Margrave pointed his gun at Zero, but Zero only replied with a "Go ahead and fire. You can't miss." This guy was the very definition of the term '_unflappable'._ The Margrave lowered his gun, and then Zero told him that he wanted to trade that _thing-a-majig _for Kururugi (what was in it?). The Margrave refused saying that the boy killed Prince Clovis, but Zero then admitted to being Prince Clovis' murderer, surprising _everyone_.

Then Zero said something about saving Britannian lives in exchange for Kururugi (again, what the hell was in that thing?). Afterwards, Zero said something about 'Orange' (was that a code or something?). After which, the Margrave ordered the soldiers to release them all! Then some shooting went on, but in the end, Zero, the Kururugi guy, and the transport's driver escaped by jumping off the bridge, of all things, where an accomplice was waiting.

* * *

After some time, the news announced that Kururugi went to his trial and was acquitted of the crime (why the heck did he go back? That Kururugi boy was either very confident in his innocence, or was very stupid). Then, he found out that the new Viceroy would be Princess Cornelia (definitely bad news for that Zero guy).

A few days later, the unbelievable happened. Ashford Academy has just acquired its first Eleven student, Suzaku Kururugi! He didn't know what to think of the guy. On one hand, he was declared innocent, but on the other, he was still an Eleven in a purely Britannian school. He was all Stephan's friends could talk about.

* * *

A day later, he saw a very strange sight. He was walking towards the Horticulture club's shed when he saw the Vice President running after _something. _He said _very strange_, as it really was a rare event to see the Vice President to be _running_ at all.

A few minutes later, the President's voice was heard throughout the campus. Hearing her voice over the PA usually meant one thing, _events,_which usually meant a club budget increase_._ He ran the short distance towards the club's shed where he saw his fellow Horticulture club members gathered. The club president ordered them to do their best to win for the Horticulture club.

All of them quieted down when the Student Council President continued the announcement.

"The cat!" The President's lovely voice continued (the _cat_?).

"We are in pursuit of a fleeing cat! All club activities are suspended. All participating clubs would receive additional funds, and whoever catches the cat will get an extra-special chance at a kiss from the Student Council member of their choice!" The President then started cackling over the PA.

This was his chance! He would find the cat and get a _k-k-kiss_ from Kallen! Speaking of her, he and his fellow club members caught sight of her while she was walking along the school path. She turned towards the nearest speaker, and looked surprised by the President's proclamation.

"Student Council? Meaning me too?" They heard her ask herself.

Instead of letting herself answer her question, Stephan and his fellow club members jumped out of the bush they were hiding behind (he noticed the Film Club doing the same thing from the next bush) and answered her question with a loud "Of course!" (he noted that they said that at the same time, as if it were rehearsed- well, it _was_ to be honest).

"We get to go into the Student Council building..." said a guy from the Film Club.

"And feel her sweet lips..." another continued.

"It's not gonna be a gimmick like a kiss on the cheek, is it?" said another.

"I'd be fine with getting it on the cheek!" shouted the Horticulture club president.

"You can choose where she kisses?" someone next to him blurted out. This question seemed to motivate everyone even more.

"ALRIGHT!" With that, everyone started looking for that _very special_ cat, leaving Kallen alone.

* * *

As Stephan was running along, he heard the girls squealing in delight. They probably realized that the Vice President was fair game too. He then had to jump of the way twice, the first time was to not get crushed by Ashford's Britannian football team (who were known to be big fans of the President), and the second was to not get trampled by the horses of the equestrian team (no fair!).

He and the rest of the Horticulture club members started looking through the plants, hoping that the cat was hiding there somewhere.

"Find it at all costs!" the Horticulture club president yelled out.

"This takes courage, chaps!" the Horticulture club vice president added.

"And when you do find it, hand over what it stole to me! Me! Me! Me!" the Student Council President yelled over the PA, which made her cough afterwards (Stephan hoped that she was okay, Ashford wouldn't be Ashford if the President wasn't there).

"I think its leg is hurt, since its footsteps were out of sync," a sweet, soothing and gentle voice added. That voice could only belong to one person, the Vice President's little sister Nunnally Lamperouge (also, Stephan would bet that she was the only one in this campus who could hear that well).

"And..." Nunnally continued, "Oh! That cat meows like this: Meow!" Her cute meow served as a boost of encouragement to everyone who heard it, it also made everyone yell 'MEOW!' in response. Nunnally was as adored by the students as much as her brother was, after all.

Anyways! He really has to find this cat!

* * *

**AN: Happy New Year everyone! I hope you enjoyed reading this, and feel free to review. I would like to know what you think. If you have any requests or suggestions, feel free to leave them.**

**The next chapter would be in Kallen Stadtfeld's POV.**

**OC List: **

**Mr. Newton**: Name of the math teacher. Based on Sir Isaac Newton's name.

**Robert Fischer**: Name for the President of the Chess Club; based on Bobby Fischer.


	8. The Students, Part VI: Kallen Stadtfeld

**Disclaimer: Code Geass is not mine T_T. I wished for that for Christmas, but I'm not quite sure if even Santa can acquire the copyrights to it...**

**AN: I categorized Kallen under **_**The Students **_**as she does ****not ****become part of the Student Council until her and Lelouch's second year. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy reading this.**

* * *

It's _Kozuki _NOT Stadtfeld, damn it! She hated that _Britannian _name! Even Kallen herself would admit that she hated many things. Especially that step-mother of hers (how Kallen would love to see that stupid stepmother of hers be put in her place!). And her father. And the Britannians. And Ashford Academy. Its extravagance was a slap to the face of the Japanese, who worked their fingers to the bone just to feed themselves. The only reason she was in it in the first place was her brother, Naoto. It hurt to think about him, especially since it hasn't been long since he died. When he was still alive, he convinced her to attend Ashford. Now that he's gone, the only reason she attended the Academy was to cover up her other "activities" that may or may not be illegal in nature.

* * *

Lelouch Lamperouge? Yes, she's heard the name before but Kallen doesn't know him personally. The things she did know about him, she had heard from her "friends" (as if she could be friends with _Britannians_), all of whom have a crush on him. Sure, he had a very pretty face, but she'll bet this month's allowance that he wouldn't even be able lift a sack of rice.

She would normally use her allowance to fund her _extracurricular activities_, as she would call it sometimes, that was _definitely _illegal. Her father tried to make up for his absence by depositing a ridiculous amount of money to her bank account every month. Her monthly "allowance", as her father called it, was probably equivalent to a Japanese person's _yearly income_.

* * *

The Stadtfelds were a prestigious Britannian family, complete with family crest, and all. The family held the dukedom of Edmonton, and this made them quite rich. Investing in the development of the Tokyo Concession made the family even wealthier. Her father, Albert A. Stadtfeld VI, was the 34th Duke of Edmonton.

Kallen has never left Japan, but she's heard many things about that place. Edmonton was in Alberta, which was northeast of Pendragon. In terms of power, her father was not at the top, as only the royal family could ever be there, but he was definitely influential enough. The amount of power he wielded reached that point when he invested in developing the Tokyo Concession. Another thing she hated him for (the other thing being the fact that he left her, her mother and brother just like _that_). He was partly responsible for turning the Tokyo that she loved to the Tokyo Concession that she now hated.

The Britannian occupation of Japan forced the Japanese into the ghettos as Britannians took over their cities. The Britannians took away their name, their home and their culture from them. The Japanese were branded as 'Elevens'. Japan was renamed Area 11. They were prohibited from even conversing in Japanese, especially in public settings. Japanese restaurants were few, unlike before the invasion. Everything that made them Japanese were taken from them. If that wasn't bad enough, they took her beloved older brother, Naoto, from her. And for that alone, she absolutely _loathed _those damned _Britannians_. Her mother was now gone to her too. Changed from the vibrant, charming woman that she once was, to this...this empty shell of a person she was now. She hated her mother for being so _weak. _She hated her for still trying to cling to the man she loved, Kallen's father. Kallen couldn't understand for the life of her how her mother can bear degrading herself by serving her former husband and his new _Britannian _wife, who insulted her any chance she gets.

* * *

From time to time, she _did_ wonder why her father never had any children with her stepmother. They have been married for some time now, as her father and mother's divorce was finalized several months before Japan was invaded (which begged the question, did he _know _about the invasion beforehand?). She wondered if her father truly loved her mother. Kallen thought that he respected her mother at least, since he refused to wear a wedding ring when he got remarried. She heard that he was forced to do divorce Kallen's mother by his father, the then head of the House of Stadtfeld. She wondered why he didn't fight for her mother if he truly loved her.

* * *

GAH! The annoying squealing of those girls who decided on their own that they were Kallen's friends (_yeah, right_) was making her want to knock them out. Although doing that would destroy her façade; and she could NOT afford to do that, so instead of knocking them out, Kallen tried to find the reason for their annoying squealing.

They were eating lunch in one Ashford Academy's many courtyards. She turned around and saw the reason for their irritating squealing. _Ah_, it was _him _again. Ever since her entry to the academy, that pretty boy, Lelouch Lamperouge, was the only thing her "friends" could talk about. Kallen was told that some senior challenged him to prove that he was better than him to win the affection of some girl. Today, the event was ballroom dancing, of all things. How _stupid_. If a man wanted to prove himself, they should just fight it out. That was how _real _mean should do it! But _ballroom dancing_? Kallen scoffed at the idea as she found the ballroom dance battle ridiculous.

_This _was why she hated Britannians. They spent money on the stupidest and worthless things while her people suffered in the ghettoes, barely getting by.

* * *

Thankfully, the boy ignored her "friends" despite their squealing because if he took notice of them, she's sure that they would squeal even louder, and Kallen wasn't so sure her temper would last. She might end up choking them, just to shut them up. And then she would... STOP! She needed to stop that smile that promised broken bones and pain (and lots of it!) that was slowly appearing on her face which would ruin her 'sickly' façade.

Why the heck did she choose that one again? Oh, right. It's so she won't be suspected of being a member of a terrorist cell. And that she would have an excuse to miss out on school, which made her question the Britannian school system. And their intelligence. After all, she didn't even have to give the name of her 'illness' for them to excuse her from school, which meant that her research was useless (she was planning to tell them she had 'chronic fatigue and immune dysfunction syndrome'). She only had to promise to keep up with her school work. Kallen supposed that the fact that she was her father's heir was also a major factor.

* * *

Anyways, the pretty boy, as she'd taken to calling him, was wearing a tail suit, of all things, while walking around the school. Even Kallen would admit that he looked dashing in the suit, but it's not like she would fall for a _Britannian,_ or even worse, _fan girl_ over one. She imagined him getting chased by his fan girls; she had a feeling he wouldn't last very long before he was caught (and probably molested and/or raped).

* * *

Before entering Ashford, Kallen thought that fan girls only existed for music idols and celebrities. Outside of anime and manga, she didn't think fan clubs for other students existed. After all, what school would fund such clubs? Ashford Academy, apparently. The Academy had a Lelouch Lamperouge fan club, and her "friends" were members. They tried to invite her but she (thankfully) was saved by a phone call from Ohgi. Although she did wonder what the heck did they do in such a club? She imagined a shrine dedicated to Lelouch, and the girls would site _seiza_ style (as if _Britannians _would do that) just staring at it.

Creepy.

Said pretty boy (who was being followed by a huge crowd of girls) was heading towards the Student Government Clubhouse, where the event was to take place. Her "friends" dragged her towards the clubhouse to watch. Since she was supposed to be weak, she couldn't exactly fight back. If she did, oh it wouldn't be pretty. She would break their- KALLEN! CONCENTRATE!

'Can't hurt them. Can't hurt them. Can't hurt them,' she chanted over and over again, in her mind.

* * *

Soon enough, Kallen and her "friends" were part of the huge crowd of spectators waiting for the show to begin. She overheard that apparently, the pretty boy won the first part of the challenge, and now, the odds were even, as his opponent was probably just as experienced as Lelouch in terms of ballroom dancing. She also overheard something about a mysterious, disappearing runway, which puzzled her a bit.

She also found out that Lelouch was actually the Vice President of the Student Council. In her mind, he would always be the "pretty boy" or the "noodle boy", Vice President of the Student Council or not.

* * *

The two boys' partners walked up to them. For (_very_) pretty boy, it was the (creepy) President of the Student Council, Milly Ashford, who was wearing a pale blue dress. For the other boy, it was another senior, who was, apparently, the president of the Classical Dance club.

The Classical Dance teacher told them to get ready, after which, she then pressed a button on a remote that started the music. Kallen wasn't much of a dancer herself, but since she was a daughter of a duke, she had to at least learn the Britannian Waltz, which the pairs were going to perform.

As she mentioned before, she wasn't much of a dancer, so she can't exactly judge people on their dancing, but _damn. _The Student Council pair was _very_ good_._

If she didn't know any better, she'd think they were royalty, but if they really were, then Kallen wouldn't hesitate to take out her pink purse and then she'd- STOP. RIGHT. THERE. KALLEN! Remember that they still need you! YES! She will keep this façade! For Naoto's dream! For Ohgi! For Inoue! For Nagata! For Yoshida! For Minami! For Sugiyama! For Tamaki! Wait! Kallen was still not sure of Tamaki... so, _maybe_ for Tamaki, too?

She shook her head to clear her mind from those thoughts. She looked back to the dancing couples, and saw that they were dancing something else. What that 'something else' was, she did not know. The dance was not as...circly as the one before, and was more...kicky. She might not know what they were dancing, but to her, the Student Council pair seemed to be doing very well (the surprised expression on the judges' faces helped too). Meanwhile, the girl from the other pair was for a lack of better word, _dragging _the other boy across the dance floor. The boy seemed terribly confused and scared, and for a moment, Kallen pitied him, but then she remembered that this boy was a _Britannian_, and shook off the thought_._

Then, someone changed the music again. The other girl looked smug, while her partner remained confused. But the expression on the female senior's face changed to an expression of disbelief when the other pair continued dancing. And the new dance was just..._wow. _It was very different from the first two, as it was more...lively, and for some reason, Kallen couldn't help but search the area for a bull.

Kallen's phone rang, startling her a bit. It also earned her a couple of glares from the people around her. She checked the screen, and saw that the caller was 'Home'. '_Home'_, that meant it was Ohgi. She saved Ohgi's number as 'home' since no one at her house would call her anyways, and she refused to call _that place_ her home. It's merely a _house_ that she spent some time in sleeping and eating at.

* * *

Kallen started to move through the crowd, but before she exited the clubhouse (she's never felt as claustrophobic as she did then), she felt someone's gaze on her. She turned around, and her blue-eyed gaze met the President's. For some reason, it made Kallen shiver unpleasantly. Thankfully, their eye contact was broken when pretty boy spun her around, making Kallen breathe a sigh of relief. The music and their dance style changed again, it seemed, but she needed to call Ohgi back.

Kallen moved towards an unoccupied area, and checked for eavesdroppers before flicking her phone open. She went through her contacts list and called Ohgi back.

"It's time, Kallen," said a deep voice on the other end.

"Got it. See you later then," Kallen replied, and then quickly hung up. A long conversation can become quite risky.

She had a mission, and she will _not, can not_ fail. She will succeed, and that Glasgow would soon be theirs.

Kallen would not hesitate to make a deal with the devil himself, if it meant that Japan would be liberated, but until said devil appears, she and the rest would have to make do.

* * *

**AN:****Oh, only if Kallen knew that this 'devil' went to the same school as her.**

**I finished this earlier than I expected to, or it's maybe just because I ran out of ideas? I don't think I'll be able to write action scenes, that's why I try to avoid them at all costs. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it.**

**Kallen's would be the last **_**The Students, **_**after this, I think I'll make one chapter in a teacher's POV. After which, I'll finish off the rest of the Student Council members. Shirley and Milly are the only ones left, I believe.**

**As usual, reviews are very ****much appreciated, as it makes me all giddy (weird word, that one is) inside. English can be a very strange language sometimes.**

**Also, I mentioned before that I live in Canada right now (beautiful, rainy Vancouver, to be more specific). But I just wanted to ask, basing on my English, where do you think I originally am from? I'm just curious. And it's not on my profile either.**

**Thanks!**

**Oh, and here is the OC list again, if you're curious: **

**Albert A. Stadtfeld VI**_**:**_The name I gave to Kallen's father, the Duke of Edmonton. I don't have a particular reason for choosing Edmonton, other than the fact that it sounded very British. Edmonton is a city in Alberta, Canada. The first name, if you haven't figured it out yet is from the province's name.


	9. The Teacher

**Disclaimer: None of this stuff is mine. I wish it was.**

* * *

**AN:****To Lenkish:****Thank you for reading it! And it makes me happy to know that you enjoyed it. Yes, English is technically not my first language, although I started learning it at a young age. As for your suggestion, I might do the one regarding Lelouch's views on the student body, as soon as I find some free time. It would probably be separate though. Thanks for reviewing :)**

**To Kah'rels:****Thank you! I'm not sure if I will be doing a chapter with Suzaku because, yes, the time frame is mostly before his enrolment at Ashford. And frankly, I dislike him. However, if I do get an idea, I'll do it. I just hope I don't ruin it for you, should I go through with it.**

**This would be probably be the only completely OC in this fic, as no teacher names were released. Or at least, I haven't seen any from Season 1. **

**I have edited some of the chapters a bit to correct some grammar mistakes that I found (although I'm sure I missed some), cleared up the timeline a little bit, and added little bits of text here and there. **

**Anyways, I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

William Gordon Bysshe Chaucer-Fleming (yes, he was aware that his name was a mouthful. Blame his mother, not him) graduated from PendragonUniversitywith honours. He majored both in English and in Britannian Literature. He also had an English education certificate, allowing him to teach anywhere in the Empire. He was given an offer to teach English (funnily enough, despite the strong patriotic feelings at Pendragon, the official language of Britannia is _still_ called English) atAshfordAcademy's Middle School department right after graduation, which he accepted right away (it helped that his wife worked there too, as the art teacher).

He was new to Ashford, and it was during his first year of teaching there that he met the eldest Lamperouge. Lelouch and his batch mates were in their third and final year of middle school, so William wanted to make sure they would be prepared for high school, especially in terms of writing, so he planned to make this year very writing intensive (he can already hear the students whining and cursing under their breath).

* * *

The eldest Lamperouge was in his second afternoon class; students in that time period tend to be quite lazy, and inattentive, seeing as it was their last class of the day, and all they want to do was go home (he's been there, after all). The bell rang, signalling the end of the first of the two afternoon classes. The students shuffled out of his classroom to get to their lockers, then to their next class.

After a few minutes, students started entering his classroom, looking around for an empty seat. One of the first students to come in was a tall, black haired boy, accompanied by a shorter, blue haired boy who was talking animatedly. The black haired youth seemed to have felt his gaze, and met William's green eyes. William broke eye contact immediately, finding the boy's purple eyes beautiful, yet, a bit strange, and frankly, quite intimidating.

He glanced around the room, seeing that a large number of the students were slowly entering. After his scan of the room, he found himself glancing at the boy again. There was something about the boy that made people, or at least their eyes, _gravitate_, towards him; at least, that was what it looked like to him. He noticed that most of the girls kept glancing in the boy's direction too.

He can see why, as the boy was gorgeous. The boy was the very definition of the term '_pretty boy_'_._His features were symmetrical and refined. He had the almond shaped eyes, with a unique eye colour to boot, the high cheekbones, and the perfectly shaped nose, topped off with a strong jaw. The boy also exuded a regal and confident air.

While he was scanning the room, he saw the boy walk towards the seat near the window in his peripheral vision. Graceful too, it seems. His presence was commanding, that short encounter was enough to tell him that; William imagined that he'll probably feel the same should he be fortunate enough to meet a member of the Imperial Family. He's also quite sure that his wife would love to paint the boy; if the boy is lucky, he wouldn't have William's wife as his art teacher (he loved his wife very much, but even he has to admit that she could be quite scary at times, especially when trying to convince someone to pose for her).

The bell rang again, startling him out of his musings. He stood in the front, waiting for the bell to stop ringing, when a couple of students rushed into the room; they seemed relieved that they made it in time. The two students quickly found empty seats, and promptly sat down.

* * *

He introduced himself to them, and took the roll call. The students seemed quite happy that he didn't make them introduce themselves to the rest of the class (only if they knew what he has in store for them). He learned that the boy was named Lelouch Lamperouge, while the boy next to him was Rivalz Cardemonde.

After the roll call, he began to talk about the rules, his expectations of them, the course outline; basically, the usual stuff. He handed out their syllabus for the year, and told them that he expected them to keep up with their reading.

"Next year, most of you would be entering high school. High school is different from middle school, to say the least. The teachers would expect more from you, and that you do your best. Passing high school is basically 100% hard work and 40% good luck, so-"

"Sir?" An orange-haired student raised her hand.

"Yes?"

"Doesn't that add up to 140%?" She asked confusedly.

"Well, you've obviously never met that EU leader then..." he trailed off, smirking, confusing the girl even more. "As I was saying, to prepare for next year, we'll be doing things that would definitely help you out. Today, you might have noticed that I didn't make you introduce yourselves to the rest of the class. I did that for a reason. Today, I want everyone," he said while looking at the students, who seemed curious (not for long!) about what he would make them do.

"...to write an essay," he added (cue the groans).

"I want you to introduce yourself through writing. I want you to talk about what you did this summer, or if you didn't do anything, what you _wanted_ to do. Talk about what you're looking forward to this year," he continued, "Or if you want, what you're _not_ looking forward to. I just want to see you guys writing. Trust me; you'll be doing a lot of this in high school, and especially in college or university. You have an hour. When you're done, place it on my desk," he finished.

He noticed that the boy, _ah no_, _Lamperouge_, had a small frown on his face, but followed his instructions nonetheless. He sat back down on his chair, and observed his students. Most of them seemed to be deep in thought, others, including Lelouch, were already writing, while a few were just staring at their paper blankly, including the Cardemonde boy (Rover? River? Rival? He glanced down at his attendance sheet, _ah, __Rivalz__. _Well_,_close enough).

* * *

A quarter of an hour has passed, and so far, only three people have finished, the Stadtfelds' scion, the Fenette girl, and Lamperouge, all of whom are just staring into space.

Soon enough, there was only ten minutes left. It always amused him to see students glancing at the clock every five seconds, as if it would make time stop or slow down.

When five minutes have passed, he announced the remaining time left, which prompted most of the students to start scribbling like maniacs.

Five minutes passed quickly, and he told the students to hand their work in, if they haven't already. Most of them stood up and went to place their essays on his desk, but a couple of students seemed to be writing still. It was River, and the Einstein girl. Oh, he meant _Rivalz_. Anyways, he had to warn the two of losing marks if they didn't hand it in now. The Einstein girl stood up and handed it in, while Rive-Rivalz' hand seemed to be cramping. William cleared his throat, and raised his eyebrow while doing a '_gimme'_ motion with his hand. Rivalz (about time he got it right the first time) gulped and looked back down at his paper, and looked back up at the now frowning William. He heaved a great sigh, and stood up, and finally handed his essay to William.

* * *

William didn't want the students to hate him too much right away, so when Rivalz handed his essay in, he dismissed them early, much to their enjoyment. After the students left, he took out a red pen and started marking the essays. As he expected, Rivalz spent too much time staring at his paper, and ended up not finishing his essay. The Einstein girl, Nina, did alright, but not that great. He marked twenty five more essays before getting to Shirley Fenette's. It was surprisingly well written, her penmanship, however, could use a little bit more work, although it wasn't as bad as Rivalz' chicken scratch handwriting. He's never taught Shirley before, but knew her because his new friend, who happened to be the swim team's coach, couldn't help but boast about her treasured aces. William knew what to expect from Kallen Stadtfeld, thanks to his colleagues. They told him that despite not attending class often because of her illness, she was still _somehow_ at the top of her class, and English class was no exception.

He didn't know what to expect with Lamperouge. He took the boy's essay and looked at it. He was amazed at his penmanship; most boys his age had sloppy and messy handwriting but his was different. It seems that Lamperouge knew exactly what he was going to write, and did not have to use any correction tape, which was another highly unusual thing (even he needs to correct himself while writing).

He read the essay, and was amazed once more. He found no mistakes, both in grammar and spelling. The essay was much better than a high schooler's, albeit a bit vague. After reading the essay again, he decided to give the boy a perfect score (he wanted to give 140%, but he's not sure if the boy will get the reference). The other students got lucky that he marked Lamperouge last, because if he didn't the rest of the class would find themselves with a lower mark, since he knows he'll be comparing Lamperouge's essays to theirs.

Right now, to him, Lamperouge seemed to be the perfect student.

* * *

Unfortunately, as time passed by, William learned that Lamperouge wasn't as perfect a student he once thought he was. He didn't always do his homework, but thankfully, he kept up with the reading (either that or he had read the books in the syllabus before). Whatever homework he did hand in was well done. It was the same with in-class essays, quizzes and tests. He wasn't at the top of the class (he wonders how Stadtfeld was doing it), but he wasn't failing either.

* * *

It was near the end of the year, when Nina Einstein approached him for help. She told him (after much stuttering) that she wanted to apply for funding from the Dallas Research Institute for her research. They had to discuss their research, and convince whoever's judging to fund them. Apparently, only ten students out of who knows how many, across the Empire would receive funding. To win this would potentially secure the winners' futures; a recommendation from the Dallas Research Institute would look great on a résumé after all, especially since the D.R.I.'s patron is none other than the Prime Minister of Britannia himself, Prince Schneizel El Britannia.

However, there was a slight problem. As much as he wanted to help Nina, William did very poorly in science class, and would definitely be unable to help out with correcting the information presented in the request. Fortunately, he came up with a solution. He told her to come back tomorrow, while he asks the people he had in mind to help her.

* * *

After she left, William packed up, and went to the middle school faculty room. Upon entry, he found the two people he was looking for, Demetrius Cavendish and Marie-Wilhelmina Curie Rontgen, the science teachers, who were preparing to leave.

"Excuse me, Marie, Demetrius, but I need your opinion", William asked.

"Regarding what, William?" Marie responded for the two of them.

"You see, Nina Einstein, wanted to apply for funding from the Dallas Research Institute, and I am planning to get Lelouch Lamperouge to help her with it."

"Funding from the D.R.I., huh? I've heard of it; only ten students from across the Empire will get it. And if it's Miss Einstein doing the research, she might go far, but wait! Why is she asking _you_ for help?" asked Demetrius.

"Ah, she's worried about her English, and convincing the judges, but I'm afraid I'm not knowledgeable enough about nuclear science to be able to tell if she's got her facts right," William answered.

"Well, I think if it's Miss Einstein and nuclear science we're talking about, she'll go far, but yes, she might be a genius with calculations and such, but I've noticed that her written work is not as good as her math," Marie answered.

"That's why I am planning to get Mister Lamperouge to help her out. If I had to bet, I would bet that the only student who can come close to understanding what Miss Einstein is doing would be _him_," William responded.

"I'm not sure even _I_ can fully understand what Miss Einstein is doing. But now that I think about it, yes, the only student who can help her with this would be Mister Lamperouge," she agreed.

"I agree with Marie. From what I've heard, the Chairman's granddaughter is planning to recruit him as her Vice President as soon as he goes into high school. He's considered a genius; quite unmotivated but still a genius. But wait, are teachers prohibited from helping her?" Demetrius asked as he packed his things.

"I'm not sure, but, Mister Lamperouge has missed quite a lot of assignments, and with so many exams to mark, I wouldn't have much time to help Miss Einstein out. I was planning to get him to help her out, and if he does, I'll forget about his missed assignments. And if you don't mind, will both of you look their work over when they finish their final draft? I'll check the more technical parts, but knowing _him_, there wouldn't be mistakes," William explained as they walked towards the parking lot.

"I don't know about Marie, but I don't mind. The Chairman would be pleased if Miss Einstein won this, so if we want a good bonus..." Demetrius trailed off, turning to Marie.

"Sure, I don't mind doing it either," she shrugged.

"Thanks! I'll inform them tomorrow. By the way, how _did _Milly Ashford become the High School Department's Student Council President while she is still in her _first _year of high school?" William asked.

At that question, all three teachers stopped in their tracks. As if on cue, they all felt unpleasant shivers running down their spines. William was clueless to the reason he shivered, and so he turned to his companions, and saw that they were both shaking their heads in a 'no' motion, as if trying to forget _something._

"Do you guys know something about it?" William asked.

"No, thank the Emperor, we don't," Demetrius answered.

"Trust me, William; I think we should leave this matter alone. I'm sure we would all be better off if we _don't_know how she did it," Marie added.

"Why not, surely she's not _that _bad, right?" William asked. At the end of that question, both his companions turned to look at him as if he was crazy. Demetrius was about to say something when they heard someone approaching them. They all turned towards the source of the sound, and in his peripheral vision, he saw both of his companion's eyes widen in..._fear_?

He looked at the student again, she didn't seem scary at all; in fact, she was quite the opposite. He looked her up form head to toe, trying to find what was causing his colleagues' fear. He started with her feet; the girl was wearing the mandatory black leather penny loafers, with a pair of blue socks reaching just below her knees. She had long, smooth legs which were also partially covered by the black skirt, a voluptuous body with a flat stomach, and erm...great _assets _(What? Teacher or not, William was male and _only_ 25! And it's not like he's going to try _anything_).

She was also wearing a crisp, white shirt, underneath the pale yellow blazer. Her neck tie was perfectly tied around her long, graceful neck. Then William reached her face; and there he saw a perfect white smile, but there was _something_ wrong about her smile; that _something _made him shiver in fear, he was now beginning to understand. He looked at her large, blue eyes, and saw the amusement in them most likely caused by the teachers' reactions to her presence. He turned to look at his colleagues, and just _knew _that the fear he saw in their eyes was now present in his. He understood then and there that you do not, under _any_ circumstance, mess with Milly Ashford.

* * *

"M-Miss Ashford! W-what are you doing here?" Demetrius stuttered out.

"I'm just visiting, Mister Cavendish. Long time no see. How are you?" Milly asked, the Cheshire cat grin never disappearing from her face.

"I'm quite fine, thank you. It's quite nice to see you, but I must leave. My uh...fish needs to be fed," Demetrius replied nervously.

"I'm sorry for keeping you from your fish then. Goodbye!" she replied.

Looking relieved, Demetrius quickly walked away towards the parking lot. Marie, taking Demetrius' lead, said her goodbyes, and left William on his own, but not before giving him an apologetic and guilty smile. William felt nervous sweat rolling down his forehead when Milly turned to him.

"I'm afraid we've not been introduced before. I'm Milly Ashford, it's nice to meet you, Mister..." Milly trailed off, while offering her hand to him.

Not one to be rude, William shook her hand while introducing himself, "Chaucer-Fleming. But Mister Fleming would work. It's nice to meet you Miss Ashford; I've heard many..._wonderful _things about you."

Her grin got wider, "Oh, have you? Anyways, I can show myself around. I hope I am not keeping you from anything, Mister Fleming."

"A-as a matter of fact, I must be going soon. The wife awaits," he said with a nervous smile.

"I see, well, it was nice to meet you, Mister Fleming. Have a safe trip!"

"It was my pleasure, Miss Ashford. And thank you," he replied. William turned and walked as fast as he could to his car.

Once there, he unlocked the door, got in, started the car, and drove off as quickly as possible.

He swore he could hear laughter from the direction he just came from.

* * *

The next day, Nina nervously entered his classroom again. He told her who he thought could help her, and just as he finished saying the student's name, the student in question came in (speak of the devil and all that).

"Ah, Mister Lamperouge! Just the person I wanted to see," William said.

The boy approached his desk gracefully, and asked "Can I help you with anything, Mister Fleming?"

"Actually, Miss Einstein here is the one in need of your help," he replied. Lelouch turned to the girl, and asked "What do you need help with, Miss Einstein?"

"U-um, I-I..." she trailed off, turning to William, who just sighed heavily, for help.

"Well, what Miss Einstein was trying to say was that she needs your help in writing something that would convince representatives from the Dallas Research Institute to choose her as a recipient of their funding. I'm afraid I won't be too much help with this, as nuclear science is not my forte, and I am quite busy this time of year. However, some colleagues in the science department and I will take a look at your final draft to correct any mistakes before you submit it."

"If it's related to science, wouldn't Mister Cavendish or Miss Rontgen be a better choice for this? Or better yet, Doctor Labie of the High School Department?" he asked.

"Well, both Mister Cavendish and Miss Rontgen are busy, but they are the colleagues I mentioned that will proof read your work. And as for Doctor Labie, I heard that his daughter is graduating from the Imperial Colchester Institute. And so he's returning to the Mainland this weekend. Seeing that it's quite a long trip, I also heard he'll be taking an early vacation, so it would be difficult to get help from him, with him in the Capital. Before I forget, if you help Miss Einstein, I will count this as homework which would replace some of the ones you failed to hand in. So, will you do it, Mister Lamperouge? The only thing you'll be doing is correcting her grammar and such, and making sure she got her facts right, and her sources cited properly."

The boy in question thought it over for a moment, "Just one condition, my name should never be mentioned in any shape or form, especially if she wins it."

"Are you sure?" he asked, slightly confused with Lelouch's request.

"Yes."

"I believe that's agreeable. What do you think Miss Einstein?" William asked.

"T-that would be great! T-thank you!" Nina replied, bowing her head slightly to Lelouch. The two discussed their meeting times, and went to their respective seats.

* * *

A couple of days later, Nina handed her finished work to him. He read it over, and as expected, it was flawless. With Lelouch's aid, he did not doubt that Nina would be chosen as one of the ten. Especially since he can not understand _a word_ of what her research was about. He then handed it over to Marie, who handed it to Demetrius afterwards. Both of them looked very impressed when they gave it back to him. He looked it over, and as he predicted, there were no grammar and spelling errors. He gave it back to Nina, who would hand it in.

* * *

A few weeks later, Nina came in early and approached him. She had a small smile on her face, and brought him great news. Not only did Nina win the funding, but she also acquired an _additional _funding, courtesy of In Vogue. He congratulated her, while hoping, in his mind, that the Chairman would give them a bonus too.

Lelouch soon came in, and was informed about Nina's win. He saw him congratulate her, giving her a small smile, but was otherwise unaffected, which made William wonder if it was an ordinary thing for him. He just shrugged it off, and began the lesson.

* * *

Later in June, Lelouch and his batchmates finished Middle School and were going to be high schoolers in a few months.

* * *

Lelouch was not the only Lamperouge William would teach.

He also taught the younger Lamperouge, Nunnally, who seemed to be the polar opposite of her brother, especially in terms of personality.

As for looks, they shared the same beautiful, refined features, albeit Nunnally had light ash blonde hair instead of the jet black of her brother. William wondered what her colour her eyes were under those delicate, permanently closed eyelids; were they the same royal purple of her brother? He knew he'll probably never find out. Both were very good looking, and attracted a lot of attention with their incredibly good looks.

If Nunnally could walk, William was sure that she would walk with the same grace her brother does, as even her hand movements were graceful. Both siblings were scarily intelligent and eloquent. Neither Nunnally nor Lelouch would repeatedly say '_yeah_' and '_like_' during conversation like the other teenagers.

He has heard only praise from Nunnally's other teachers, especially the music teacher. It seems that the music teacher was impressed of Nunnally's skills with the lyre, the piano and the flute.

William honestly preferred Nunnally over Lelouch as a student, as Nunnally took her studies more seriously than her older brother. Despite her disabilities, Nunnally had no problem being at the top of her class. Only if Lelouch was as good a student as her sister...

Wherein Lelouch's attitude was cold and distant, his little sister's was warm and friendly. He saw how everyone would light up whenever Nunnally entered the room, and how her smile and gentle laughter was contagious to those around her.

Both siblings attracted people to them, but for different reasons.

Lelouch attracted people with the type of charisma great and legendary war generals and leaders would have, while Nunnally had the type of charisma beloved queens would have.

It was quite an interesting experience teaching them, which made William wonder what the Lamperouge siblings' parents were like to produce such talented children. He has asked around and found out from the other teachers that no one, except perhaps the Chairman, has ever met their parents. Demetrius told him that he had heard that the Chairman was their guardian, as their parents were long dead. Well, no matter who raised the two, William must commend them for producing such gifted children.

Ah, he must go. The bell has just rung, and class would be starting soon, and he's looking forward to seeing the student's reactions when he tells them about the assignment he's about to give them!

* * *

**AN: Hope you enjoyed it. Reviews are always welcome!**

**And here are the OC name origins:**

**William Gordon Bysshe Chaucer-Fleming**: If it's not obvious yet, I have this strange fascination with long names, especially double-barrelled last names. This name was given to the English teacher. William was from William Shakespeare; Gordon was from George Gordon Byron, Lord Byron; Bysshe is from Percy Bysshe Shelley; Chaucer is from Geoffrey Chaucer; Fleming is from Ian Fleming. I'm not a big fan of English literature, but I just felt like naming the characters based on something they do, in this case he's an English teacher, so you have some literature here.

**Demetrius Cavendish**: The name given to the science teacher. Demetrius was from Dmitri Mendeleev, who we have to thank for the periodic table of elements; Cavendish was from Henry Cavendish, who discovered hydrogen.

**Marie-Wilhelmina Curie Rontgen**: Another science teacher. Marie and Curie was from Marie Curie; Wilhelmina and Rontgen was from Wilhelm Röntgen.

**Doctor Labie**:A character in one of the spin-off mangas, _Nightmare of Nunnally_, I think, I haven't really read it. I am a huge Code Geass fan, but I am a bigger Lelouch by CLAMP fan.


	10. The Secretary

**Disclaimer: Code Geass is not mine.**

* * *

**AN: To:****Ivory Principle****:** **I'll be honest, and admit that I started writing this partly as a way to fan girl over Lelouch. That should tell you enough about my gender. I read the conversation between the teachers again and noticed that I****_did_****use 'Mister Lamperouge' a lot. Thank you for pointing that out, I changed it. It's good to hear that you enjoyed it!**

**To:****Stellencia Patherica:****Thank you for your kind words. I did try to make all the chapters connect with each other in some way, as I enjoy reading those sorts of stories as well.**

**To:****Ve:****That's good to know. I don't like Mary/Gary Stu characters either, and I hope I never end up writing one. Unless it's Lelouch we're talking about.**

**To:****Kah'rels****: I reckon you're right. And, thank you! I'll be honest, I had to google marmite. Mind telling me how it tastes like? It looks...**_**interesting.**_

**Now that's out of the way, I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Unlike the other girls who claimed to be in love with _him_, Shirley actually _knew_ him. And she was _not_a member of his fan club, contrary to popular belief (after all, she already was a member of the Student Council AND the Swim team; and being the only diver of the Poseidon's trident doesn't make it any easier).

It wasn't love at first sight for Shirley either. She was introduced to him during their first year of high school, and thought he was way too aloof.

She moved to Area 11 from New York after her second year of Middle School because her dad, Joseph Fenette, got transferred to Narita to work for Prince Clovis, as part of His Imperial Highness' research team (she has wondered from time to time what her dad researched, but he would always tell her that he could not as it was _classified_).

Her dad enrolled her to Ashford Academy, one of the most prestigious schools in all of the Empire, wherein she was immediately inducted to "Poseidon's trident". The "Poseidon's trident" were made up of the three best swimmers in the swim team, and thanks to her swimming records from middle school, it was easy for her to get in. Becoming a member came with a few perks. The most notable ones included unlimited access to the Aquatics Centre and a scholarship.

She also ended up becoming the Student Council's secretary in her first year of high school, despite being relatively new to the school. And it was there, in the Student Council room, she was first introduced to _him._

Shirley has heard many things about him upon her entry to the academy; and it was usually about either his good looks, or his intelligence. Indeed, he was _very_good looking and his eyes were mesmerizing, but his cold attitude put her off. He also never took his studies seriously. Now that she thought about it, Shirley doesn't think he took _anything_ seriously.

Milly Ashfo-, rather, _Madam President_, was the one to recruit her to the Student Council Shirley wondered how in the world did Milly Ashford, a high school freshman, became the Student Council President. She made the mistake of asking the woman in question, but instead of a reply, Madam President smiled that shiver-inducing smile of hers and so, Shirley learned not to ask again. Like, _ever_.

The Student Council was a strange bunch, indeed.

At the top, there was the President, Milly Ashford, who was possibly the most perverted person in the Empire. Scratch that, _the world._The President was always playful and teasing. She was also a very _physical_person; she liked to hug, or rather _grope_, people, especially her, much to her dismay (she's already lost count how many times that person _ambushed_her). The President had a mind of a dirty, old man in that admittedly gorgeous body of hers (Shirley would admit that there were times that she felt jealous of the President's curves).

Then, there's the Vice President, Lelouch Lamperouge. He was, to say the least, gorgeous (the Student Council was definitely not lacking in the looks department with these two here). He had straight, jet black hair, and beautiful purple eyes (Shirley swore that she's seen that shade of purple before on TV, she just can't recall on whom). She heard that he was very intelligent and would do very well in school if he just applied himself to his studies.

The Treasurer was Nina Einstein. She had long, dark green hair done up in two braids, and pretty blue eyes. She didn't talk much as she was extremely shy, but was very kind. When she does speak, the rest of the council listen to her, as her suggestions were usually very good. It makes sense seeing as the girl was an actual genius. Certified by Mensa and everything. She had some difficulties with English class, but her high marks for Mathematics, Physics, and Chemistry more than made up for it. She also learned that Nina had a phobia of Elevens. It seems that she can't stand them, and would leave the room, or cower in the corner whenever Miss Sayoko enters.

On a side note, Miss Sayoko seemed to appear and disappear out of thin air, scaring the hell out of everyone, except Madam President and Lelou (as she had taken to calling him), both of whom seemed used to it. It's either that Shirley and the others were simply not paying attention to their surroundings, or Miss Sayoko was one of those _ninjas_, which was very unlikely because there aren't supposed to be any left..._right_? Shirley trusted Miss Sayoko to not hurt them, even if she was a _ninja_. After all, Lelou wouldn't leave Nunnally alone with her if Miss Sayoko was dangerous.

Anyways, back to the Student Council.

The Social Events Coordinator, Rivalz Cardemonde, was Lelouch's self-proclaimed best friend and proud of owner of a RR1200 BMC (a _motorbike_, Shirley learned later). He was Lelouch's polar opposite when it came to their personalities. Rivalz was always smiling and joking around, while Lelouch usually looked bored. Rivalz was also hopelessly in love with one Milly Ashford. He was Lelouch's sidekick; driving him to casinos in the Concession.

That was another thing, _gambling_. Lelouch and Rivalz would skip class at least once a week to go _gambling_, of all things! Shirley wondered how they got in, as they were underage. Thankfully, only those of the Student Council knew where the two went whenever they skipped classes; or they would have gotten [**AN:**killed, or worse,] expelled!

A few days after joining the Student Council, she met Lelouch's younger sister, Nunnally, who, apparently, visited the council frequently. Shirley didn't expect Lelou's personality to take such a drastic turn upon her entrance.

Gone was the bored look he usually sported, replaced with a gentle, loving smile (it almost made her tear up when she realized that Nunnally wouldn't be able to see her brother's smile that was reserved for her). His entire being _lit up_, for a lack of a better word, upon his sister's entrance. He rushed to her side to greet her, then, raised her hands to his lips to kiss her knuckles, which made her giggle (so cute!). The sound, upon reaching their ears, made everyone in the Student Council smile at the siblings.

Everyone's attention was so focused on the siblings that Nina did not even react to the presence of Miss Sayoko, who was also smiling gently at the siblings.

Her attention went back to the siblings when Nunnally giggled at something that Lelou had said.

_Nunnally._

Possibly the most important girl in Lelou's life. It was quite obvious. She began to love Nunna as a younger sister in a short amount of time. She was just _so cute_. Shirley thought that it was impossible not to love Nunnally in some way. The girl was just so kind, so caring, so loving towards everyone that, even the super shy Nina can't help but talk to her.

Nunna was the school's beloved princess, the same way Lelou was the school's very own prince. There was a time when she said that out loud, and the reactions weren't what she expected. Rivalz and Nina nodded their heads in agreement, while Madam President had a curious look on her face. When she noticed Shirley looking at her, she broke into a small smile and nodded her head. Nunna's big smile diminished in its brightness. Lelouch on the other hand... For some reason, Lelouch _scowled_at the comment, but he quickly schooled his features into a neutral expression.

Shirley didn't get it. Did she say something wrong? When she asked him about it, he shrugged it off, and changed the subject quickly.

* * *

A few weeks later, Madam President had asked her to buy some things for Nunnally's thirteenth birthday party the next day.

As she was heading back, a crowd of people had gathered around, looking at _something._That something turned out to be a car accident. An old couple and a gangster-looking Britannian guy were involved. The back end of the old couple's car was damaged as well as the front end of the gangster's car.

The gangster was yelling at the old couple who looked afraid while gesturing to his damaged car. No matter how she looked at it, it was the gangster, who came up from behind, that was at fault.

Looking at the crowd of people and the amount of traffic that the car accident was causing, Shirley was wondering why no one was diffusing the situation, and was considering of doing it herself.

The tow truck had just arrived, but the driver wasn't doing anything either. Shirley was about to move when a tall boy wearing the Ashford Academy uniform appeared and walked towards the tow truck. Wait, was that _Lelouch_? She tried to get a better view, and saw that Rivalz and his motorbike were in front of this huge truck, that's why she didn't notice them at first.

Lelou took the hook from the tow truck and hooked it on the front end of the gangster's car and then returned to his seat in Rivalz' sidecar. When the stoplight turned green, the tow truck drove off, dragging the gangster's car with it. The gangster started running after the tow truck while the old couple looked relieved. Everyone was laughing at the sight; even Shirley couldn't help but giggle a bit. However, looking at her classmates' direction again, she noticed that while Rivalz was laughing and pointing at the gangster, Lelou looked bored as usual.

She wanted to know what he was thinking then. He didn't even boast that he did it; in fact, he didn't seek any form of recognition at all. He simply continued reading his book, while the rest laughed.

_Huh_. Shirley wondered what was going on in that mind of his.

The old couple looked around to see their saviour, but unfortunately, Rivalz had already driven off. Speaking of which, she had to return to the school too!

When she got back, Lelou was no longer in sight but Rivalz was. She asked him about the incident that she had just seen, to which Rivalz chuckled. He told her that they were picking Nunnally's gift up, and while waiting at the stoplight on their way home, this car, which was still going rather fast despite the red light, slammed into the old couple's car. The occupants of both cars were uninjured, and quickly got out to inspect the damage when the gangster started blaming the old couple, the scene which she witnessed herself.

That night, she talked with her roommate, Sophie, about what she had witnessed. She then proceeded to ask Sophie if she knew anything about Lelouch, something that made Sophie start teasing her. She does _not_like him at all! Her denial just seemed to fuel Sophie's teasing.

'_She can think what she wants. She does not like Lelouch __that __way! She's just curious about him, that's all!'_

* * *

Around nine the next day, the Student Council (except Lelou and Nunna) headed to the wing of the Student Government Clubhouse where the Lamperouge siblings resided.

At first Shirley thought that the two siblings lived in the dorms, but when she thought about it a bit more, she realized it would be hard for Nunna to do so.

Miss Sayoko let them in, and told them that Lelou was in the kitchen while Nunna was still asleep. The President went to the direction of the kitchen after telling the rest to start decorating the living room. Shirley brought out the decorations she bought and handed them out, then got to work.

After a few minutes, they were finished, so she, along with Rivalz and Nina, proceeded to the kitchen to see what the President and Lelou were doing.

What she saw surprised her a little bit.

Both the President and Lelou were cooking. Watching Lelou was cool, as he was multi-tasking like crazy. He seemed to be cooking three things at the same time while the President was ordering him to cut some more vegetables for her. The President noticed the three of them just standing there, and got them to work. Lelou was cooking some kind of soup while sautéing something in a pan. He'd check on the cake he was baking every five minutes as well.

Is this what Lelouch wanted to do in the future? Become a chef?

He seemed to be able to take the pressure, and she'll find out later if it tasted as good as it smelled.

Since Shirley was a bit distracted with her thoughts at that time, she didn't notice that she had accidentally turned up the setting on the mixer a bit too high, and as a result, the batter that the President had asked her to mix was all over her clothes.

_Uh oh._

Shirley called the President's name meekly, and when she turned to her, the President just sighed heavily.

That was how she ended up taking a shower at Lelou and Nunna's house. Lelou was kind enough to lend her some of his clothes, as she didn't have any with her.

When she put it on, she erm..._sniffed _it a bit, and found that she liked the smell.

'_Is this how Lelou smells like?'_she asked herself while blushing.

'_Wait! What was she doing, sniffing people's clothes?'_

His shirt was too large for her, and reached up mid-thigh. The sleeves and the pants were a little bit too long as well, so she had to fold them to avoid tripping.

She headed back to the kitchen, wherein she was delegated to peeling-vegetables duty to avoid any more accidents.

She wasn't _that _bad was she? She was just..._distracted_, that's all!

She felt guilty for adding to Lelou's responsibilities, as he was now measuring ingredients for the batter she messed up. The President was telling him to hurry up, but he told her that the measurement had to be exact. And when the President asked him how exact, he replied with, "At least three decimal places".

Both the President and Rivalz looked at him funny, while Nina seemed to agree.

As for her, she couldn't help but blurt out,_"_What_? __Three_ decimal places? 0.001 millilitres of sugar couldn't make that much of a difference could it?"

Nina was the one to answer for Lelouch, "Well, in chemistry, Shirley, if your measurements were off even by a little bit, you can get catastrophic results. And since cooking is basically chemistry..." Nina stopped talking when she noticed that everyone was now looking at her, she returned to her peeling.

After a few minutes of awkward silence, the President yelled out 'FOCUS!' and told them to get back to work, to which Lelou scolded her and told her to quiet down as Nunnally was still asleep.

'_What a considerate brother', _the sight made her want an older sibling like Lelouch.

They finished at around lunch time, and at that time, Nunnally was already awake and dressed.

They sang 'Happy Birthday' to her, and the bright smile she gave them made waking up early worth it for Shirley.

Lelouch wheeled her to the head of the table and promptly sat down next to her.

Shirley learned that Nunnally preferred French cuisine over Britannian, and Lelouch, the ever doting brother, made sure to prepare only her favourites.

The door to the kitchen opened to reveal Miss Sayoko bringing out the soup.

"_Bouillabaisse,_" Lelou explained (and goodness, Lelou speaking French made her shiver, she noticed she wasn't the only one, but her eyes might have been deceiving her). "It's seafood soup, basically," he added. He motioned to the soup, giving them the go ahead, while he fed Nunnally.

'_Oh my Emperor!' _her eyes widened.

This was _really _good! She finished her bowl of _bouillabaisse _quickly.

If every dish would be as good as this, Shirley knew that she'd have to work extra hard at the swim practice tomorrow.

Then Miss Sayoko brought something that the President called _foie gras_. She told them that it was duck liver, to which everyone, bar the President, Lelou, and Nunna, reacted by staring at it (she expected it to _quack _for some reason). Nunnally was giggling after the President told them that, but promised them that it would be good, and that they should try it out first.

Not wanting to refuse the cute birthday girl's request (and not wanting to attract her older brother's ire), they tried it.

It was exquisite! Shirley didn't know that the President could cook so well!

They told her as much, but Rivalz began to go overboard with his praising a little bit, to which the President just smiled.

The main course was something Lelouch cooked.

It was _coq au vin._The President revealed that Lelou has been working on getting Nunnally's favourite dish perfect for some time now, something that Nunnally appreciated very much, and made Lelou blush a little bit.

_'He looked so cute with that blush!' _Shirley's thoughts were interrupted when she heard Nunnally gasp after taking her first bite.

When they asked her what the matter was, she replied that it was exactly how their mother made it. Nunna turned to Lelou and gave him a big hug and proceeded to kiss his cheeks while thanking him profusely. Lelou smiled that gentle smile of his again and patted Nunna's hair while whispering something to her.

Whatever Lelou said to her calmed her down, and got her eating again. The rest followed suit.

_'Their mother must have been one hell of a cook,'_ Shirley remembered thinking, as she took a bite.

She began wondering again if Lelou wanted to become a chef, as he'd definitely become a successful one.

_'Well, from what I do know of him, he can even become Emperor if he so wished,'_ she mused. _'I wonder if I can be Lelou's Empre- Wait! Stop right there, Shirley! Stop being so silly! Everyone knows that only those of the Imperial Family can be the next Emperor or Empress! And Lelou and her would never... She doesn't like him that way...Right?'_Her thoughts became interrupted when Miss Sayoko brought out the dessert.

It was an Imperial cake according to Lelouch. Nunnally seemed surprised by that bit of information.

Shirley has heard of the Imperial cake before. It had 'Imperial' in its name because it was quite difficult to make and had expensive ingredients, and as such, only the higher classes, usually those of the Imperial Family, could afford to have it made. If Lelouch was able to make it himself, then he could also become a master baker if he so wished.

'_Lelou is certainly becoming more impressive by the minute,'_she thought.

Lelou lit the thirteen candles on the cake. Then they sang Happy Birthday again, after which, Nunnally blew the candles out, and with Lelouch's help, sliced it.

Shirley was the last one to be given a slice, and when she looked around, she noticed the President's blissful expression.

Her eyes were closed, while her fork was still in her mouth. She looked around and saw the same thing in both Nina and Rivalz' faces. Nunnally looked really content as well, something that made Lelou smile. He seemed to have felt her gaze since he turned to look at her curiously, which made her avert her eyes and blush.

She took her first bite of the cake and closed her eyes in bliss. There were no words to describe how good it tasted!

Soon enough, they were able to finish the cake, with the President eating the most. Something that made Shirley wonder where she's putting it. She knew that the President was not in any sports club, nor was she athletic, so it must have been due to good metabolism and genetics.

The President noticed that Shirley was staring at her, and so she winked at her and posed suggestively, making Shirley (and Rivalz, she noted) blush.

"GIFTS!' the President yelled out, which made Lelou cover his ears as she was sitting next to him.

"You don't need to yell, Milly. We're right here," Lelou grumbled.

"Here you go, Nunnally! I hope you like it!" The President handed Nunnally a medium-sized package, completely disregarding Lelouch's complaints.

"I'm sure I will, Milly. Thank you!" Nunnally replied with a smile.

"Now open it, open it!"

Nunnally complied and took out a dress.

"Can you describe it to me?" Nunnally asked cutely.

"Of course! It's a green dress with long, white sleeves. It should fit you perfectly!" the President answered.

"How do you know my size, Milly?" Nunnally asked while tilting her head in curiosity, while Lelouch was looking at the President suspiciously.

"I have my ways..." the President trailed off playfully, winking at Lelouch who just narrowed his eyes.

Rivalz broke the silence that followed by handing Nunnally her present.

"Well, uh...I wasn't sure what you'd like, so uh...me and Nina shared for this one. Right, Nina?" Rivalz turned to the girl.

"Y-yes. I-I hope you like it, N-nunnally," the shy girl continued.

"Thank you, both of you. But you didn't have to give me a present. You guys being here is enough," Nunnally replied with a kind smile.

"W-well, I know you probably mind if we didn't, but this guy here would...ah! Never mind! It's no big deal at all!" Rivalz chuckled nervously, seeing Lelouch's glare being sent his way.

Nunnally ripped the wrapper open, revealing a huge, brown teddy bear.

"Thank you, Nina! Thank you, Rivalz! I think I'll name him Lelou!" Nunnally stated, making everyone except Lelouch, who was grumbling again, laugh.

It was Shirley's turn.

Shirley handed Nunnally a small package. Nunnally accepted it with a smile, and opened it up. She took the bracelet out of its small box.

"I saw this the other day," Shirley began, "And it has purple stones on it. The same colour as Lelou's eyes because I erm...don't know...yours..." she trailed off, squirming slightly in her seat.

"Thank you, Shirley!" Nunnally replied with a big smile. She gave Shirley a big hug, and continued, "They're blue."

"Huh?" Shirley asked confusedly.

"My eyes. They're the same colour as my mother's," Nunnally answered with a serene smile.

"O-oh!" Shirley exclaimed. She didn't know what to say, and she was afraid to look at Lelouch's direction.

"But, it's good that they're the same colour as my brother's eyes, because it'd be like my brother is always watching over me," Nunnally answered with a smile.

Thankfully, Shirley was saved by answering by the President, of all people.

"OKAY! Let's clean up before Lelouch gets an aneurysm from seeing this mess we made," the President declared while grabbing the gift wrap she used then headed to the kitchen. The rest followed suit while Lelouch sighed heavily.

"How 'bout Lelouch, Madam Prez? We didn't give him a chance to give his present," Rivalz asked.

"Oh, Rivalz. You know Lelouch. He'd want to give Nunnally's present later. In private," the President answered.

The four of them threw the garbage into the trash can, and headed back to the living room.

"Now that's out of the way, let's watch this movie I brought!" the President said excitedly, taking out a couple of DVD cases from her bag.

Shirley wondered why the President would watch a movie during a _blind _girl's birthday party, but her thoughts were cut short when she heard Nunnally speak.

"That's a good idea! What's the title?" the girl asked.

"I brought a couple of movies. One's _Sleepless in Pendragon._The other one is _HMS Britannia._ I heard both were really good," the President answered, looking back and forth between the two movies.

"Sleepless in Pendragon. It stars Thomas Ryan and Megan Hanks, right?" Shirley asked.

"Yea, and the other one stars Leonard Winslet and Catherine DiCaprio. So, birthday girl, which one sounds good to you?" the President turned to the girl in question.

"Wait! Aren't both of them chick flicks?" Rivalz blurted out before Nunnally could say anything.

"Why, Rivalz, do you have a problem with that?" the President asked, raising a perfect blonde eyebrow while narrowing her blue eyes at him. Rivalz gulped before squeaking 'no'. The President turned to Lelouch and asked the same thing. Lelouch looked around and saw Nunnally looking adorably confused before saying shaking his head 'no'.

Shirley heard Rivalz cough 'whipped', causing Lelou to look pointedly at him, the President, and then Rivalz again before raising a regal eyebrow. Rivalz, realizing what he was implying, shut up immediately.

Seeing as no one said anything, Nunnally decided on watching HMS Britannia.

After making some buttery popcorn and bringing out some drinks, they began to watch the movie.

Needless to say, throughout the movie, Shirley began to imagine herself in Primrose's place and _her _Lelou being in John's place.

_Wait! When did he become her Lelou? Stop it, Shirley! Next thing she knows, she'd be calling him 'My Honey' like Meeya! Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out. Control that blush. Okay! Good!_

Then, the John-sketching-Primrose-naked scene came on.

Shirley passed out.

Fortunately, no one really noticed her doing so as the room was dark and everyone was engrossed in the movie. When she came to, the ship had already sunk.

'_Aw, darn it! She missed most of it!_' Shirley complained inwardly.

She turned to look at the others, and saw that Rivalz was blowing his nose on a tissue, while both Nina and the President were dabbing tears from their eyes. Lelou, on the other hand, had his shoulder around Nunnally, who had her head resting on his chest, while he whispered to her what was going on.

'_Aww. They look so cute!'_Shirley exclaimed in her mind.

After the movie, they helped Lelou clean up, 'to prevent a seizure' according to the President.

Afterwards, they started to say their goodbyes to the two siblings.

Soon enough, she was back at her dorm.

* * *

A determined-looking Sophie was waiting for her. She asked her if she could introduce her to the President. Shirley knew of her friend's crush on Milly, and as Sophie's best friend, she agreed to do it tomorrow, right after classes. Shirley did owe her one after all, since Sophie began to ask about Lelouch for her.

When the bell rang the next day, Shirley proceeded to the Student Council room to meet Sophie. Upon reaching their meeting place, she saw a strange sight.

Both Sophie, and Daniel from the Newspaper Club were kneeling in front of the Student Council room with their ears pressed to the door.

"What are you guys doing down there?" Shirley asked, causing the two to jump in surprise.

"Nothing!" "Chickens!" they stated at the same time.

Shirley turned to Daniel, wondering about his strange answer. She was about to ask what he meant by 'chickens' when they heard Lelou and the President's voice from the inside.

For some reason, Sophie and Daniel looked very surprised, confusing her even more.

'_What's up with these two?'_she wondered. She then proceeded to open the door, and the sight beyond it was almost incomprehensible.

A _shirtless_ Lelouch was lying face down on the couch. She continued to stare.

'_Such nice, smooth-looking skin. I wonder if its feels as smooth as it looks'_

"Wait! A _massage?_That's all it was?" she heard her friend say.

'_Does Lelou use lotion?'_

"What else would it be?" she heard the President ask.

"Oh! I said that out loud? How embarrassing!" It seemed that Sophie's was broadcasting her thoughts out loud again.

"You're still saying it out loud," the _shirtless _figure lying down on the couch continued, "And yes, a bit embarrassing, I think. Now that we've been interrupted, could you get off of me, Milly?"

Only at that moment did Shirley notice the other figure on the couch. The President got up quickly, adjusting her skirt, while Lelou went into a sitting position.

'_Oh. My. Emperor!' _Shirley kept repeating in her mind. _'His body should be illegal. Way too distracting. I thought he hated exercise? Then why is his body so...' _Shirley heard the President speak, but she couldn't process the words. Then, someone nudged her side.

'_OW!' _Shirley turned to the person who nudged her, temporarily distracted from the sight that was Lelouch. She looked around, and saw the President looking like she was waiting for something.

When no answer was forthcoming, the President sighed and asked her question again.

"I said, what are you guys still doing here? School's over and there's no meeting today."

"Ah, um, Madam President, we're here because of...uh," Shirley trailed off as she made the mistake of looking in Lelou's direction, because now, her eyes have returned to his torso.

'_Mmmmm. This is too much. Way too tempting! I want to hug hi-' _Shirley's thoughts were interrupted when she heard the President speak again.

"What? Lelouch's hot bod caught your tongue, Shirley?"

Upon hearing that, her blush deepened and she started to stutter no, but for some reason, could not get past the letter 'n'. She felt like she was going to pass out again, when the President gave Lelou his clothes, which he put on quickly.

Shirley wasn't quite sure if that was a good thing or not.

Despite looking at her feet, her thoughts went directly to the memory of Lelouch's chest covered in massage oil. _'Oh Emperor! Here we go again! Get over it, Shirley!'_

She felt Sophie nudge her again, but her consciousness was trapped by that _enticing _image. She heard Sophie introduce herself, followed by the President. Then the President asked just what was wrong about a massage, and the next thing she knew was that she was blushing again due to a perverted comment made by the President that Shirley would rather not mention.

* * *

Ever since then, she'd catch herself staring at Lelouch from time to time.

_'It's observation, that's all,' _Shirley would tell herself. But why did it sound like a lie?

"GUTS!" the President yelled, startling her out of her reverie.

"We need to finish this budget today!" the President stated.

"Well, if you helped us, Milly, maybe we woul-"

"Quiet, Lelouch! Just work faster! I'm here to supervise you guys!"

"Hey, Madam Prez, what should we do with the extra funding request from the Equestrian club?" Rivalz asked.

"The Equestrian club, huh? Hmm... just put it there for now Rivalz," the President ordered while pointing to a desk at the corner of the room. The President continued, "I'll look at it later."

"Are you sure, Madam Prez? They've been hounding or rather, _horsing,_ us for extra funding for a while now. Get it? Instead of hounding, it's _horsing_' cause they're the Equestrian clu-"

"We get it, Rivalz. Anything else?"

"They've just been asking me to tell you to give the funding to them, or they'll have to involve the horses," he said nervously.

"Let's see them try! Horses are no match for Milly Ashford! That Edward Epsom guy needs to remember that _I'm_ Ashford Academy's Student Council President, not _him_! Right, everyone?"

"Sir, yes, Sir!" everyone, except Lelouch, replied. Lelouch got hit on the head with the rolled up paper request from the Equestrian club because of it. He should just learn to go along with the President's antics; his life would be much easier. And less painful.

'This was going to be a _long _day,' she thought, looking at the huge stack of paper on the table.

"Now, get back to work!"

Shirley started to write.

* * *

**AN: I couldn't help but add that little Author's Note at that point. If you know what I am referring to, then you're awesome!**

**If there's still some confusion with the timeline, hopefully the timeline at the bottom would help clear it up. I tried to make it as accurate as possible. I based the start and end of the school year on the Canadian ones, meaning September and June respectively. I think the US one is similar, but I'm not quite sure. When I went to my school in the Philippines, for us, school started in June and ended in March. The Japanese one is probably not too different.**

**I'm no chef, that was why I didn't describe the food very much.**

* * *

**Notes:**

If you don't already know, here it is:

Sleepless in Pendragon= Sleepless in Seattle

HMS Britannia= Titanic, I wanted to put just _Britannia,_but the word makes the empire come to mind.

As for their cast, Thomas Ryan, Megan Hanks, Leonard Winslet, and Catherine DiCaprio, if you haven't figured it out yet, you can just add/subtract some of the letters in their first names then switch their last names around until you get a Hollywood actor's name.

For the characters, Primrose and John, well, just think of the possible nicknames for those names.

**Edward Epsom:** Equestrian club member. 'Edward' from Edward Cullen. Just kidding. He kind of ruined that name for me, and I _liked_that name. Now, I'm not so sure. It's from Edward Smith-Stanley, 12th Earl of Derby, who inaugurated the derby. 'Epsom' was taken from Epsom Downs Racecourse in England where the derby takes place.

* * *

**Timeline:**

**Dec. 5, 1999**=Lelouch is born

**Oct. 25, 2003**= Nunnally is born (Lelouch is 3)

**Summer (?) of 2009**= Marianne is killed, Lelouch (9) and Nunnally were sent to Japan

**Aug. 2010**= Japan becomes Area 11 (Lelouch is 10)

**Middle School:**

**Sept. 2013-June 2014**= Lelouch (13-14) enters Ashford; Grade 7 Middle School

**Sept. 2014-June 2015=**Lelouch(14-15)is in Grade 8

**Sept. 2015-June 2016**Lelouch (15-16) is in Grade 9

**June 2015-June 2017**Lelouch (16-17) finishes Middle School

**Sept. 2016-June 2017**Nunnally (12-13) enters Middle School, Grade 7

**High School:**

**Sept. 2016-June 2017=**Lelouch (16-17) Grade 10, Vice President of Student Council

**Sept. 2017-June 2018=**Lelouch (17-18) is in Grade 11

**Sept. 2018=**Lelouch (18) is in Grade 12 [would have graduated at 19]

Most of the events take place during Lelouch's first year in high school, the year before he becomes Zero.

I am not actually sure which grades are in Middle School as I did not go to Middle School (well, at least I don't _think_ so).

**Before I forget, the next chapter would either be in Milly's POV or Reuben's.**


	11. The Chairman

**Disclaimer: Code Geass is not mine.**

**AN: To Samuraiguy2: Thank you for bringing those mistakes to my attention. I'm not quite sure why, but when I upload new chapters, the things I typed things in italics lose the space I placed. The Word versions saved in my computer have the spaces between them, but the version in this site does not. I'm not sure if it has to do with the font as I use the Microsoft Word default font of Times New Roman instead of the site's Verdana.**

**I hope you enjoy.**

* * *

Reuben looked out of the window of his office at Ashford. He scanned the beautiful school grounds and saw students milling about, carrying their suitcases and catching up with friends, ready (he hoped) for another school year.

It was the first of September again, in the year 2017 a.t.b. He hoped that this year, Milly would control herself, but knew it was a lost cause. Speaking of his favourite (and only) granddaughter, she was already heading to the Student Government Clubhouse, where, unknown to most of the student body, two members of the Imperial Family resided.

He worried about those two from time to time, but he knew that as long as Nunnally was concerned, Lelouch would be extremely responsible. Reuben could not help himself from worrying, after all, those two were like grandchildren to him as well.

Reuben sat himself down on his favourite armchair, and allowed himself to reminisce.

* * *

_July 30, 2013 a.t.b._

"Sir, your opponent has just arrived," announced the butler.

"Thank you, Alfred. Bring him to my study," replied Reuben.

Reuben turned to look at the window. This was one of those few days that he was not busy with the Academy's affairs.

As Ashford Academy's Chairman, Reuben had many responsibilities to fulfill. It left him very limited free time, which he liked to spend playing his favourite game, chess. He was fairly good at it; the same can't be said for the nobles in this Area. The nobles' would often challenge him, and every once in a while, he'd accept. And win some money in the process.

His opponent for today was Earl Perdu. Reuben hoped that the man's last name wasn't a sign to how the match would go.

A knock disturbed him out of his thoughts.

* * *

"Come in," he ordered.

His butler led a young male teenager in to his study.

He looked the boy up and down, starting from the toes. When he reached the boy's face, Reuben could feel his eyes widening in realization.

"You!" Reuben gasped out.

The boy remained quiet, simply raising a regal black eyebrow.

"Is something the matter, sir?" His butler asked, turning to look at the boy suspiciously. "Shall I call security?"

"No! It's fine. You may go, Alfred. Make sure no one disturbs us," he ordered.

His butler looked hesitant at first, but followed his orders nonetheless. Reuben waited for the footsteps to die away before turning to look at the boy once more.

"It's been four years since I saw you last, Your Highn-," he began, but the boy interrupted him before he could continue.

"I am no longer a prince, Chairman Ashford. I have thrown that title away years ago," said the teenager.

"Then please, call me Reuben. I've never been one for formalities," he said as he offered his hand to the boy.

"Very well...Reuben. Please call me Lelouch. Lelouch _Lamperouge_," the boy conceded, as he shook the older man's hand.

"Please have a seat, Lelouch," Reuben gestured to the seat in front of him, and continued, "Would you like anything to drink?"

"No thanks," replied the boy as he sat himself down gracefully.

"May I ask how you survived? Is Nunnally...?" Reuben trailed off, looking at the boy hopefully.

"Nunnally Vi Britannia is dead. As for how I survived, well, it's a long story and I'd rather not talk about it." He frowned, suddenly realizing something, "By the way, how did you realize it was me?"

"Y-you look exactly like your mother. Except the eyes. Y-you have your father's eyes," he stuttered, still shocked over the realization that Nunnally was dead.

'_Oh, Marianne! May you forgive me one day for leaving your children alone. I tried but...'_ his thoughts were interrupted when he heard Lelouch ask him something.

"Do you think others would recognize me easily?"

"N-no. I worked with your mother for a very long time. Only those very familiar with her would recognize you."

Lelouch seemed to contemplate what Reuben has just said. Then he turned to Reuben once more, and met his gaze.

"Are you still my _mother's_ ally, Reuben?" asked Lelouch.

"Always," Reuben answered sincerely. "I owe your mother a great many things, Lelouch. I've been unable to repay her yet, and if I could do so by helping you, then I will do what I can, the Emperor be damned."

Lelouch looked at him with those piercing purple eyes, as if reading what was going through Reuben's mind.

Reuben would admit that the experience was quite intimidating, as if he was being stared down by the Emperor himself.

* * *

After a minute, Lelouch seemed to have come to a decision.

"Nunnally wants to go to school, Reuben."

"W-what? B-but you said..." he trailed off confusedly.

"Lelouch and Nunnally _Vi Britannia_ are dead, you might have seen the news. However, Lelouch and Nunnally _Lamperouge_ are alive."

Reuben's eyes widened in understanding.

"I-I see. By using Marianne's maiden name...I presume that you two have no plans of returning at all?"

"Yes, we don't. I would rather die than let those...those _scum_ get near Nunnally again," the boy declared.

"I see. If you do decide to go to the Academy, I should probably warn you that my granddaughter would most likely find out of your former status."

"And just how exactly would she do that?" Lelouch asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I...I can't seem to keep a secret from her," he sighed. "Neither can her parents. She'll sense that you're hiding something and would not stop until she learns what it is. When she does find out, I promise that you don't have to worry because she _can _keep a secret. She just can't let it lie," Reuben admitted.

"I suppose as long as your granddaughter..._Amelia_, wasn't it? As long as you make sure she keeps it to herself, her knowing isn't a big problem. If she can't though...I can't let Nunnally be put in danger again..."

Reuben could hear the unspoken threat in the boy's statement. If he grew up to be anything like his mother, Reuben knew he'd follow through with it. Thankfully, Milly knew when to keep things quiet, or else, not even Reuben would be unable to protect her.

"I suggest you refrain from calling her Amelia. She's quite adamant that she be called Milly. And if you don't mind, let me know beforehand when you plan to tour the campus. I can arrange a guide for you. When you do decide to attend the Academy, contact me immediately so I can give you the paperwork."

"Alright."

"That reminds me. Where _is _Earl Perdu?" he questioned the boy in front of him.

"The earl has decided to forfeit your game yesterday after losing a game to me," the boy smirked.

"Is that so? If you've improved since the last time we played, then I do not stand a chance now. Better just forfeit now," Reuben chuckled out while he tipped the white king over.

"You're not even going to try?" Lelouch asked, raising an eyebrow.

Reuben shrugged. "Say, Lelouch, my boy, what would you have done if I answered wrong a while ago?" Reuben asked, tilting his head in curiously.

"I would've completely destroyed Ashford of course," he answered seriously.

After seeing the look in the boy's eye, Reuben did not doubt his words at all.

'_This boy was destined to be great. Does the Emperor realize what he'd just lost when he exiled this one?'_

Reuben was startled out of his musings by the sound of the grandfather clock announcing that it was already 3 o'clock.

"Well, Reuben, it was nice to see you again, but I must go now," said Lelouch as he got up from his seat.

"It's great to see you _alive _and well, my boy. I hope you choose Ashford Academy. Be careful on your way back," he said, clapping the boy's shoulder.

* * *

When he opened the door to let Lelouch out, he saw his son, Robert, about to knock.

Robert did a double take upon seeing the boy. Then his eyes widened in recognition. Lelouch knew what the look in Robert's eyes meant, and turned to Reuben.

"I'll take care of him, don't worry about it," he promised the boy. "Alfred!"

Their butler appeared quickly. "Get Jeffrey to drive him home."

With a bow, their butler complied immediately, asking Lelouch to follow him. With a final glance at Robert, who was still gaping at him, and a nod at Reuben, he left with Alfred.

* * *

"Come in, Robert."

His son was woken up from his stupor, and complied immediately.

"W-was that...?" Robert asked.

"Yes, it was. But, I wan-"

"Then, we can save it! We can save Ashford! If we hand him over, we can get our titles bac-"

"SILENCE!" he roared. He started pacing, "The Vi Britannia line is _extinct_, Robert. Do you understand?" Reuben asked while he turned to look at his son.

"No. No, _I don't_, father. Don't you _see_? If we give him back to his family, _we'll _get _everything _back!"

"And how do you think we got that in the first place?" Reuben asked, turning to his son.

Robert mumbled something under his breath.

"What? I can't hear you, boy! Speak up!" he demanded.

"L-lady Marianne!" Robert said out loud.

"And whose son do you think that was, just now?" Reuben asked, raising a bushy, grey eyebrow in the process.

'L-lady Marianne's," Robert replied nervously.

"Good. Good. And here's what we're going to do. _We _will let him and his sister be. He's a Lamperouge now, understand?"

"I said, do you understand?" Reuben asked again, when Robert failed to answer.

"Y-yes, father!"

"Keep this information to yourself. If you do tell your wife, and I know you will, make sure she does not tell _anyone _else. If I found out that you do anything regarding Lelouch, I will _disown _you. Understood?"

"Yes, father."

"Now, go!"

Robert sprinted away from his study, making Reuben chuckle a little bit. _'That boy has never changed. He's always been terrified of him. He supposed that's his fault... He didn't like acting like that in front of his only son, but to honour his promise to Lelouch, he must. Besides, if Robert did something stupid, Lelouch would definitely do something worse.'_

* * *

A couple of days later, Lelouch called him to tell him that he was planning to tour the school the next day at 11. After hanging up, Reuben then called his favourite and only granddaughter. She picked up immediately.

"Milly?"

"Hey, grandfather! How are you?"

"I'm fine, thank you. Listen, I have a favour to ask of you."

"And what would that be?"

"I need you to guide a prospective student around the school campus tomorrow, at eleven."

"It's a strange time to be touring the school."

"Ah yes. He's the son of someone I owe a great favour to, so..."

"Got it. But I'll do it only if you buy me _that_ cake again."

Reuben could almost see the smile on her face. "Of course, Milly. I expected that much."

"Oh, you know me so well, grandfather! Well, where shall I meet with this prospective student of ours then?"

"The school gates. His name is Lelouch Lamperouge. He's quite prompt, so he should be there at 11 am sharp. He has black hair, fair skin and purple eyes. That should help."

"Alrighty! Bye! _Gramps!_" Milly _knew _Reuben hated being called 'gramps'.

"Goodbye, _Amelia_." He hung up right after hearing his granddaughter's sharp intake of air. _'Revenge is sweet.'_

* * *

The next evening, Milly entered his study.

"Oh, hello, Milly. How was the tour?" Reuben asked while he lit a cigar. _'Ah...It's been such a long time...'_

"It was frustrating at first, but it ended fine."

"At first?" Reuben quirked an eyebrow.

"Well...the boy, _Lelouch_, kept interrupting my super special tour of the campus," she huffed, amusing Reuben. "Hey, grandpa, he and his sister look familiar for some reason. Who did you say their parents were, again?" Milly asked.

"I didn't." Reuben smirked.

"Oh, come on, _gramps_! You know _you_ can't keep secrets from _me_," she said in a teasing tone.

"That's true, _Amelia_, but that doesn't mean I'll give in easily," he replied in the same tone. He saw Milly's eye twitch upon hearing her hated first name. When he saw the evil smirk forming on her face, Reuben began to worry.

"Well, then you don't mind me telling grandmother about that time you broke her favouri-" Reuben's eyes widened.

"_ALRIGHT!_ Say no more! _Marianne_. The boy is _Marianne's_ son," he replied quickly, blushing. He continued, "Don't say a word about _that _to your grandmother, okay?"

'_Elizabeth would kill me if she found out that I was the one to break it!'_

"Yes, yes, grandpa. _Marianne_, you say?" Milly said as she stared up at the ceiling.

* * *

After a few minutes, Milly's eyes widened in realization as she turned to look at him. '_That's my granddaughter! A true Ashford!'_

"Marianne as in _Empress _Marianne_?" _Milly exclaimed.

"Keep your voice down, Milly," her grandfather, Reuben, chided. He couldn't help but look around the room, checking for eavesdroppers.

"B-but! That means those two are _royalty!_ Grandfather, why didn't you tell me sooner?" she asked as she paced across the room of his office. "And how are they even _alive_? Weren't they proclaimed _dead _three years ago?" Milly stopped her pacing and turned to him.

"It was _supposed _to be _a secret_, Milly. Outside of this room, only your parents know that they're alive." He puffed on his cigar. _'No one else could find out about this, after all.'_

"As for _how _they survived, Lelouch didn't tell me. He just showed up a few days ago in Earl Perdu's place," he explained.

"A _prince_. Huh...I suppose that explains the purple eyes..." she trailed off.

"Ah, yes. The purple eyes. That colour was _supposed _to be rare since it's from a genetic mutation, but a some of those in the Imperial Family, including the Emperor himself, have that eye colour," Reuben added. "That reminds me, just ask Alfred for your cake."

'_A very pricey cake. Lelouch better go to Ashford, as his tour guide was notoriously hard to bribe.'_

"I will. But before I go enjoy my treat, I wanted to ask you if those two can stay at the clubhouse, instead of the dorms? There's a wing we don't use there and it'd be easier for Nunnally..."

"Ah, yes. It's no problem," Reuben replied.

"And we need to add some ramps, handrails and such. Oh, and we also need to do something about the potholes..." Milly trailed off, not noticing the gentle smile on Reuben's face.

"Don't worry about it, Milly. I'll handle it; I'll talk to the board tomorrow. As I've told you before, I...no, our family, owe their mother. It's the least we can do after all they've gone through."

"Thanks, grandpa! Goodnight!" Milly stood up, gave him a kiss on the cheek, and exited his study. "I was afraid for a moment there. I thought I'd have to let Lelouch have his..." Whatever Milly said after that was lost to Reuben as she had already closed the door.

'_Lelouch have his what?'_ Reuben wondered. '_On second thought, he'd rather not know, as he feared he'd get a heart attack if he ever found out.'_

* * *

During the Vi Britan-_Lamperouge_ siblings' first year at Ashford, Reuben was quite curious how they would fare at his school, so he would check up on them every once in a while.

Reuben quickly found out that Lelouch and Nunnally became very popular, Lelouch especially. He had also heard rumours that some students, mostly the female ones, were planning on establishing an official fan club dedicated to him.

Well, as long as they presented the proper paperwork, then Reuben wouldn't deny the request. He couldn't see anything wrong with it, although Lelouch might. Not that the boy could do anything about it, as Reuben _was_ the Chairman, not him.

Reuben could see why the siblings became very popular. After all, both siblings took after their mother, who was a stunning woman.

If Reuben was younger, unmarried and childless, he might have considered going after her, but he was almost twice Marianne's age (not that age stopped the Emperor), and he loved his wife very much. She had the face that could launch a thousand Knightmares, and in way, it made sense that she would marry the most powerful man in the world.

Both children inherited Marianne's bone structure as well. Marianne was tall and slender, and both her children inherited that, instead of their father's broad frame. The Emperor's broad fame did pass on to his two eldest sons, Prince Odysseus and Prince Schneizel.

Lelouch was fortunate to have inherited his father's unique eyes. Even within the Imperial Family it was unique; Lelouch was one of very few to inherit his father's eye colour. Combine this unique eye colour with the boy's way with words, and they've got a lady killer in their hands. Although, from what Reuben could see, Lelouch was very much oblivious to his popularity with the girls, which made Reuben breathe a sigh of relief. He hoped that Lelouch would not grow up to be the womanizer his father was.

It didn't surprise him when he learned that both siblings were doing well in their classes, although some teachers had been complaining of Lelouch's lack of motivation when it comes to school work. Reuben could guess at the reason.

Being a member of the Imperial Family, the siblings would have been tutored by the very best that the Empire could offer. They learned at their own pace, and those who were gifted finished their schooling early. Finishing early was important because it meant that the Emperor's children could start working on their bid for their father's throne.

Despite the fact that Prince Odysseus was the Crown Prince, there was no doubt in Reuben's mind that the most likely to succeed the their father, as the 99th Emperor of Britannia, was Prince Schneizel.

Prince Schneizel was not only fourth in line to the Britannian throne; the White Prince, as he came to be known, was also the Chancellor of the Britannian Empire. He was charismatic, charming, eloquent, and persuasive. Prince Schneizel was everything that the Crown Prince should be. Unfortunately, Prince Odysseus was nothing like his younger brother. Even_ if_ he was his father's spitting image, Prince Odysseus did not exude the same aura of command that his father did. Nor did he have his brother's charisma and silver tongue.

If not Prince Schneizel, Reuben would guess that it would be Princess Cornelia. Britannia loved successful warriors, and that was what she was.

Reuben was reminded of Marianne when he saw Princess Cornelia on television.

Reuben recalled seeing her whenever he visited her idol, Marianne. She definitely possessed Marianne's fighting spirit, and had skills on par with the Knights of Rounds'. Princess Cornelia was recently promoted to Chief General of the Imperial Army, making her the youngest to reach that position in Britannian history, at twenty-two. Her popularity was steadily rising, combine that with the fact that she was third in line to the throne.

However, if Lelouch was still in the running, Reuben would not hesitate betting what remained of the Ashford fortune that Lelouch would become emperor; his position as 17th in line for the throne be damned.

* * *

As the chairman of such a prestigious school, and before that, the head of Ashford's Knightmare R&D Department, Reuben could tell if an individual had potential.

He happened upon a young Marianne Lamperouge sparring with her comrades in the military while he toured the base, and immediately saw the potential in her. He got her to become the test pilot for the Ganymede, and soon enough, she had been promoted to Knight of Six! Reuben can easily see Marianne becoming Knight of One soon.

* * *

Instead, a few weeks later, the succession crisis began upon the 97th Emperor's death, with Charles Di Britannia, emerging as the victor, with Marianne's help. Upon his coronation, the new Emperor gave Marianne the rank of Knight of Two. It also surprised (and displeased) many when he married Marianne a few days afterwards.

* * *

Some time later, on December 5th 1999 a.t.b., Prince Lelouch was born. He was the Emperor's thirteenth child and Marianne's first.

Reuben recalled visiting Marianne after she gave birth. She was proud of her boy who had his father's piercing eyes, but was otherwise Marianne's male version.

He asked her why he named her boy Lelouch. She told him that it was because when the Emperor came to see him for the first time, he looked at his father suspiciously, rather than doing something baby-like, like crying or pooping. So when she saw the name Lelouch, which meant 'the suspicious one' in French, she decided that it fit him.

From his first meeting with the baby, Reuben did not doubt that Prince Lelouch would grow up to be a contender for the throne. He was right. _'As usual.'_

Prince Lelouch, from what Marianne would tell him, excelled in his studies. He went through his tutors' curriculum faster than one can say _Britannia_. He was gifted with the piano and the violin. He became fluent in several languages quickly.

The only disappointment was that he does not seem to be possess his mother's reflexes. He knew the basics of fencing but was no match even for (Nancy boy) Clovis.

_"At least he was good with the horse,"_ Marianne would tell him.

* * *

The young Lelouch quickly fell in love with the game of chess, thanks to his older half-brother Schneizel. The only people who could pry him from the chess board were Marianne, Prince Schneizel, Princess Euphemia, and Princess Nunnally.

Reuben was an avid chess player himself. So imagine his surprise when a boy, around fifty years his junior beat him in _fifteen_ minutes. His only consolation was that he lasted longer than Prince Clovis, according to the prince.

Up to this day, Reuben does not know if that was a compliment or not.

* * *

He admired the young prince's abilities, and liked him well enough to consider forging an engagement to his only granddaughter, Amelia, who would stomp on one's foot if they _dare_ call her _Amelia_.

Not many can say that they can handle Milly Ashford, but Reuben believed that Prince Lelouch would manage. The age difference between the two was negligible, and despite the fact that the two have never met before, Reuben was confident that Milly would like the young prince. After all, he and Milly's thoughts ran on the same wavelength.

Reuben also believed neither of the two could find anything wrong with the other's appearance. From what he could see at that time, Prince Lelouch would grow up to be as good-looking as his mother, maybe even more so due to the eyes. The Emperor's eyes that the boy possessed would only enhance his appearance.

Milly on the other hand, was the spitting image of her grandmother, who was still a beautiful, elegant woman despite being in her late fifties. The youngElizabethwas even more stunning, if that was possible, and Reuben was sure that Milly would grow up to be as beautiful as his beloved wife.

And if the boy complained, prince or not, Reuben would make sure he would forever regret the day he insulted an Ashford.

* * *

The only thing that prevented Reuben from flying to Pendragon and going to Aries Villa to begin negotiations for the engagement was his wife, Elizabeth. She sat him down and told him straight up that she would _not_ let Reuben decide their only granddaughter's husband, and if he _still_ went through with it, he would return home to find himself missing a wife.

Suffice to say, Reuben did not go anywhere that day and instead, took his granddaughter horseback riding.

* * *

Reuben later found out that it was a good thing that Elizabeth stopped him from going through with the engagement plans because it seemed that Prince Lelouch already had _two _girls competing against each other for _his_ hand in marriage: Princess Euphemia and Princess Nunnally.

* * *

Princess Nunnally was Marianne's second child, and first daughter. Both children had their mother's features, but wherein Prince Lelouch had his father's eyes, Princess Nunnally had her father's. She had her father's hair colour as well. Princess Nunnally may not have excelled in her studies as much as her brother did, but she did have what Prince Lelouch did not, Marianne's reflexes. Reuben could easily see her as a Knightmare pilot like her mother; something that Marianne disagreed with, as she did not want Princess Nunnally to ever become one.

Marianne's wish came true upon her assassination. Her daughter had been crippled in the same attack that took Marianne's life. The trauma of witnessing her mother's murder caused her to go blind as well.

The only silver lining to this whole incident was that Prince Lelouch was unharmed. It couldn't possibly get worse for those two.

* * *

He was wrong, for a few days later, he found out that Marianne's children had been exiled from the Mainland.

It was just plain cruel.

They had just lost their mother, and the princess had barely recovered from the attack, and now they were being sent to the other side of the world where they knew no one. He wanted to help them, he really did. Unfortunately, now that Marianne was dead, what power they had had been taken from them, along with their title, and now, they too had been forced into leaving the Mainland.

Using what limited contacts he had, he learned that Marianne's children had been sent to Japan.

* * *

Reuben was no fool. The Imperial Court may have kept mum about the reason why the siblings were sent to Japan, but Reuben was smart enough to put the pieces together.

_Sakuradite. _

That was probably what the Emperor wanted. Tensions with the Japanese have been on the rise lately, and with the addition of sakuradite, a rare superconductor which the Japanese had in abundance, a war occurring was not far from the horizon.

By having large amounts of sakuradite at their disposal, Knightmare development would continue at a much faster pace. Since Japan produced nearly three quarters of the superconductor, it meant that the world superpower who can claim Japan first will increase their chances of winning the war.

As much as Reuben would like to go to Japan to search for Marianne's children, he can not, because he had a family of his own that he needed to protect. Going to a soon-to-be warzone would be suicidal, so he decided to wait for now. _'Forgive me, Marianne.'_

What he _did _do was hire people to search for them. Unfortunately, after months of searching, his men could not find the siblings. Reuben could not figure out where the Emperor had sent his and Marianne's children. _'No. Those children were Marianne's, not the Emperor's. No father would have done what the Emperor did if he thought of Prince Lelouch and Princess Nunnally as __his__ children.'_

Reuben doubted that the Emperor sent them to a Japanese official's home as those places would surely be targeted when the war breaks out, so he got men to look for the siblings at the homes of prominent Britannians living in Japan. They still could not be found.

* * *

As Reuben predicted, the war over Japan soon broke out.

Britannia won, and Japan was now Area 11. The news of Prince Lelouch and Princess Nunnally's death was announced. The news reporter stated that the royal siblings were on vacation before the war broke out, and that it was the Japanese forces that bombed the house they were staying at. Their bodies could not be found.

A _vacation_? What a _joke_!

When the news broke, he truly lost hope in the Emperor.

Now that it was safe, he could finally go to Jap- _Area 11. _But was there a point in going? He wanted to help the siblings but they were dead now too. _'At least they're with their mother now.' _

Prince Clovis was named Viceroy of Area 11, and was inviting Britannians to the new Area.

Reuben decided to go.

* * *

Even before their exile, Reuben had already been toying with the idea of establishing a school. He wanted to be the first to discover talented students that would help the Ashford Foundation grow. He wanted to find more people like Marianne, and finding them at a younger age will allow Reuben to help them develop these talents.

Now, after years of dreaming, he was finally got a chance to fulfill his dream. Since it was still a developing Area, real estate came cheap, and so, Reuben was able to purchase a large plot of land in the Tokyo Concession. Construction was quick, thanks to Britannian technology and the need for a Britannian school. After a year and a half, Ashford Academy was completed.

And it was _beautiful_.

It may be on the extravagant side, but the extravagance was needed to attract students, especially those of noble background. He then began hiring teachers and a principal to manage the school, while he was its chairman. Soon enough, students came pouring in.

Reuben noted that Albert's granddaughter, Nina, was one of the new students. He hoped that she would shape up to be as intelligent as her grandfather, who worked with Reuben in developing the Ganymede.

Speaking of which, they were able to keep the Ganymede, the same one that Marianne piloted, at the campus. He kept the Ganymede's original key in a safe in his study; he wanted to give it to Marianne's children when he heard of her assassination, but never got the chance to because they had been exiled.

Unbeknownst to the rest of his family, every year on the eve of Marianne's death, he would go to the hangar that housed the Ganymede and leave a bouquet of flowers at its feet, and have a short vigil, praying that Marianne and her children were happy, wherever they were.

During that week, Reuben would get nightmares that featured Prince Lelouch and Princess Nunnally asking Reuben why he left them to die. His beloved wife, Elizabeth, would try to comfort him and tell him that he had no choice, but Reuben knew the truth; that he failed to protect Marianne's children, and leaving them made him as bad as the Emperor.

When Lelouch came to visit, all the guilt he had felt was lifted from his shoulders, only to be brought back down again when Lelouch told him that Nunnally Vi Britannia was dead.

He wanted to weep for joy when Lelouch finally admitted that Nunnally was alive, but his pride as an Ashford stopped him from doing so; Lelouch introducing himself using his mother's maiden name made Reuben realize that the two of them were not their father's children any longer.

* * *

Lelouch might deny it all he likes, but he was very similar to his father, the Emperor.

Not only did they share the same eye colour, but they were both brilliant strategists; that much he could see from Lelouch's talent in chess.

Reuben believed that Lelouch would have been the perfect successor to Charles. Reuben would bet that Lelouch could make Britannia stronger than it is today; he could probably conquer the whole world if he wanted to.

However, there was one big difference between father and son, and that was their beliefs.

* * *

The Emperor did not care about the weak; after all, Britannia would not have been as great an empire as it was now if she was filled by weaklings.

Lelouch, on the other hand, believed that it was the strong's duty to protect those who could not protect themselves. He loved Nunnally too much to think otherwise. Despite his cold attitude, Lelouch cared about the people around him. He also seemed to be sympathetic to the fate of the Elevens. Reuben supposed it was because those same Elevens housed them when the Emperor threw them away.

Unlike Robert who wanted to return them to their family, Reuben understood Lelouch's hesitance to do so. Favour was a fickle thing in the Imperial Court; and it takes just _one _mistake to ruin hard-earned titles.

Friendships were tentative, that much was obvious when his family fell from grace; blood does not automatically prevent backstabbing, as was the case with Marianne.

Reuben did not believe for one moment that Marianne was assassinated by _terrorists_. If these terrorists could attack the Emperor's favourite wife at her home, then it wouldn't take much to attack the Emperor himself.

No, it simply _had_ to be someone from the Imperial Family itself. His guess was that it was Princess Guinevere's mother, Empress Finnabair Su Britannia, who had always been jealous of Marianne and her status as the Emperor's favourite wife.

Reuben wanted to know what Lelouch thought, but he happened to look at the clock and realized that the meeting would start soon.

He and the other directors had to discuss what to do with the damaged school building. It was damaged because the Equestrian Club captain thought it was a good idea to bring horses into the building to intimidate Milly into giving the club more funding.

Reuben scoffed; horses were no match for Ashfords!

* * *

**AN: As for the explanation of Lelouch's name, I couldn't think of any other reason other than what was mentioned above. I could almost imagine the moment happening. **

******I am still working on Milly's. I also remembered Sayoko. When I did, I could not figure out how I could have forgotten about the awesome supermaid. The only explanation I have was that Sayoko was using her ninja skills to make me forget about seeing her. I'm not quite sure which would be finished first: Sayoko's or Milly's. It will take some time to finish both as the semester has just started.**

* * *

**Special thanks to MisterSP for informing me that Cornelia is actually _older _than Schneizel, albeit for only 32 days. It was a surprise to learn _that_.**

**The Britannian Line of Succession is truly a confusing thing. Hope you can help me solve this problem: (I hope I got my logic and calculations right)**

**Lelouch was the 11th Prince of the Holy Britannian Empire. That would imply that he had 10 older brothers (3 of which we know).**

**Since Lelouch was 17th in line, that would also imply he had 16 older siblings (5 of which we know).**

**So, that _should_ leave us with 6 older sisters. But since Euphemia was the _Third Princess and is younger than Lelouch, that would imply that Lelouch only had 2 older sisters, Guinevere and Cornelia._**

**That leaves him with 10 older brothers (including Odysseus, Schneizel and Clovis)_, _2 older sisters, and 4 unknown siblings of unknown gender.**

**My sister pointed out that the Emperor may have cousins or other relatives that are in the line of succession. It's possible, but looking at how the British Line of Succession works, the monarch's children take precedence over his/her other relatives, or something along those lines, in the Line of Succession.**

**The only thing that would make sense was that Lelouch's brothers (that were older than him but younger than Clovis) have sons. Although that theory would be shot if Lelouch was born as 11th Prince and 17th in line to the throne, because Odysseus, his eldest sibling would only be around 15 at the time of his birth.**

**Goodness. That was confusing. If you have any questions (or answers!), feel free to message me or better yet, review :)**

* * *

**I also just realized that if:**

**a) All of those in the Line of Succession were Charles' children, and**

**b) That their position in the Line of Succession was based on their date of birth,**

**That would mean that Nunnally was Charles' _87th_ child. Can you imagine having _86_ older siblings?**

**And that Charles had _70_ children between December 5th, 1999 a.t.b. (Lelouch's date of birth) and October 25th, 2003 a.t.b. (Nunnally's date of birth). Another strange thing is that Carline Le Britannia is the Fifth Princess, and that she's around Nunnally's age. That would then imply Carline had four elder sisters. If Nunnally was around her age, then she would be Fourth or Sixth Princess (higher if either Charles or his children were _busy_). Then that means as 87th in line to the throne, _83_ of those in the Line of Succession were princes, if we assume that she's the Fourth Princess. Now, _that's_ a lot of boys. That would mean that around 72 princes were produced wi****thin the approximately 46 months between Lelouch's birth and Nunnally's. Now, the probability of having that many boys is really low, unless the Britannians have the technology to enable to chose their baby's parents to choose its gender, which is kind of too much. **

**Forget confusing, this is just plain crazy. **

* * *

**Here are the OC list; there are quite a lot this chapter.**

**Alfred: **A very butler-y name, don't you think? I apologize if your name is Alfred.

**Earl Perdu: **Name given to Reuben's original opponent._'Perdu' _means lost, in French, as in a game.

**Robert Ashford: **Milly's dad. Robert was close to Reuben so... :)

**Jeffrey: **A very chauffer-y name.

**Elizabeth: **Milly's grandmother. There's not much behind the name, I just liked it.

**Richard Zi Britannia: **Charles' father, and Lelouch and Nunnally's grandfather. Based on Ricardo Von Britannia, the Duke of Britannia's name.

**Finnabair Su Britannia: **Guinevere's mother; the name was '_etymologically related to Gwenhwyfar, the Welsh original of Guinevere'_, I couldn't find any mentions of Guinevere's mother, so I just went with that. Finnabair could also be spelled as Findabair, which kept making me think of finding a bear.

* * *

**Anyways, I hope you enjoyed reading it! Hope you'll leave a review to let me know what you think.**


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